


Voldemort Is Going Down - Part 1. Before the Battle

by sensationsalade



Series: Voldemort Is Going Down [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-04
Updated: 2020-06-07
Packaged: 2020-06-08 17:59:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 31
Words: 133,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19475788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sensationsalade/pseuds/sensationsalade
Summary: June 30th, 1997. On top of the Astronomy Tower, a battle that will change forever the wizarding world.Hit by Severus Snape’s fatal spell, Dumbledore falls from the top of the Astronomy Tower. While Harry rushes after Snape and begins his quest to find the Horcruxes, the rest of the magical world is left to deal with the aftermath and the inevitable war to come.Voldemort Is Going Down follows seven characters and their friends in a post-Dumbledore world.Among them, Lux, a Gryffindor eager to fight, and Kai, a Slytherin who simply wants to be left alone. Selene and Anya, two muggle-born sisters, along with Gabriel and Nyx, two pureblood sons, all on the run after a misunderstanding. And Julian, a confused muggle-born, turned spy despite himself.Get ready to embark on their journey from the fall of the Ministry to the final battle of Hogwarts.





	1. July 28, 1997 - 278 days before the Battle.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> This story is a story I originally wrote for my sister and I loved it so much I decided to share it. 
> 
> I had these bunch of OCs I had created for a story I wrote ages ago when I was starting middle school. It’s a story I have long given up on but the characters have stuck with me and I’ve always been determined to do something with them. Then I started sorting them into Hogwarts houses for fun and then I started imagining how they would have been like if they had gone to Hogwarts with Harry and before I knew it I was incorporating them to the 5-6-7 years arc and I decided I had to do something with them and with this.
> 
> And this is how Voldemort Is Going Down is born. It's a rewriting of the seventh book following only my OCs (with many interactions with HP characters) in a story parallel to Harry’s, Ron’s, and Hermione’s. The title, of course, comes from the Starkid song in A Very Potter Musical.
> 
> The version I'm posting on here and on Tumblr is a reworked, betaed version (by my friend Cindy who's been absolutely amazing and so very helpful) that mainly follows four characters: Lux, Kai, Gabriel, and Julian. It’s a two-part story; the first one is set before the Battle of Hogwarts and the second one during and after. 
> 
> I hope you’ll like reading my story. I sure as hell loved writing it.

The world hasn’t changed. People would think that the death of a wizard such as Albus Dumbledore would change absolutely everything in the magical world. And yet, the world hasn’t changed. But it has shifted, Gabriel notices. Before the battle that lead to Dumbledore’s death, the world was already pretty much as it is now. Dark. Dangerous. Terrifying. Dumbledore’s death has only brought out one more thing. Hopelessness. Dumbledore alive, people entertained a false sense of safety. Now that he is gone, denial is near impossible. Even Gabriel finds himself taken over by the crushing fear that seems to have washed over the country in the last few years.

Before the battle, during his seventh year, Gabriel was just as scared as everyone else, of course. He isn’t stupid, far from it. He knew, just as everyone else, that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was back. The thing was that with Dumbledore’s Army, Gabriel felt like he was doing his part, learning and preparing himself. He wasn’t there, however, at the Ministry, when his classmates faced the Death Eaters. He didn’t see what happened to Potter, or Longbottom, or anyone else, and he sure didn’t see He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named when he came and fought Potter and Dumbledore. So up until the battle, Gabriel was scared, of course, but he didn’t properly realize what they - everyone who cared about the magic world just a little, that is - were up against. Thus, when he found himself on top of the Astronomy tower, fighting the Death Eaters, it was like waking up. Engaged in a fight with a masked man whose only goal seemed to be killing him, Gabriel was suddenly very much aware of how young he truly was and, for the first time, he found himself completely helpless in the face of everything. Tired, battered, bloodied, and weak, Gabriel froze when the mask fell off to reveal his uncle face. He seemed to be as shocked as him, both realizing they weren’t fighting on the same side. Potter always acted as if he was the only one living under the weight of his name, as if Gabriel wasn’t a Nott.

Afterwards, to say that Gabriel was upset would be an understatement. He felt completely numb as everything played out. A white noise was buzzing in his ears and the pain he felt only minutes ago suddenly dulled, as if it was a simple memory. Perhaps that’s what people meant when they claimed being in a state of shock.

His friend Anya Caulfield, a seventh year like him and eldest of the DA, took the lead of the group when she realized that Gabriel was severely injured and completely out of it. She instructed some of them to take care of him and Longbottom while she lead the others down the tower before the rest of the school woke up and came to see what was happening. When he was lifted from the ground, Gabriel guessed that it was his friend Julian, a sixth year Gryffindor, who was practically carrying him. Next to them, Ezra, a sixth year Hufflepuff and Julian’s best friend, took care of Longbottom. Together, they made their way to the hospital wing.

There, People rushed to speak to him, asking him questions about what had happened, what he knew, what he had seen and done, but Gabriel didn’t move, didn’t say anything. He just laid there, useless, up until the moment Madam Pomfresh shooed everyone away so he and Longbottom, could get some rest. He fell asleep quickly after that.

Gabriel spent a few days at the hospital wing, recovering alongside Longbottom. While there, he spent a lot of time thinking about what his uncle being a Death Eater meant. It wasn’t really like it was brand new information to him. But suspecting something isn’t the same as seeing it with his own two eyes. So he tried to wrap his mind around the idea, tried to figure out what it meant and what he should do. As days went by, he opened up a bit more, especially to his best friend Lux. She, Ezra, Julian, and Anya came visiting him the most, talking about the battle, what would happen now with Hogwarts and Harry, and of course his uncle. Sage and Adelia came as well but Gabriel refused to answer their questions, feeling like they were mostly here for the gossips. They were friends but not _his_ so Gabriel felt uneasy talking to them about the battle, especially since they had never been part of the DA. Ash visited on his own, to Gabriel’s surprise. As Sage’s twin and Adelia’s boyfriend, he usually never left their side. Gabriel expected him to ask more questions but it seemed that Ash had only come to see how he was doing and to update him on what was happening outside of the hospital wing, which Gabriel was very grateful for. Ash told him about classes being cancelled, about exams being postponed, and about students being ushered out of school, which didn’t surprise Gabriel much.

Nova never showed up, Julian making up a poor lie about how busy she was and how she had never liked hospitals much. Lux and him had shared a knowing look then and if Julian noticed, he didn’t say anything, probably thinking the same but refusing to say it out loud so as not to betray his girlfriend. The truth was that the five of them - Gabriel, Lux, Julian, Anya, and Ezra - didn’t know how to react to her refusing to fight. And she, herself, clearly didn’t seem to know how to act around them, either. Lux had told him in confidence that she had barely seen Nova since that night and that she was spending most of her time with Julian or surrounded by Sage, Ash, and Adelia, as if to prevent Lux from confronting her.

Nova wasn’t the only one that didn’t visit him, but Gabriel was less surprised by that. He would have been truly shocked if Kai Alpert, in all of his Slytherin Quidditch Captain glory, had strut into the hospital wing and sat by his side. While the biggest part of him was glad Kai didn’t show up, not knowing what he could have told him, a small part of him still wished he had come. Gabriel tried hard to silence that part.

When Gabriel finally came out of the hospital wing, just a couple of days before Dumbledore’s funeral, he felt more at ease with his thoughts. Surer. Anya and Ezra escorted him to his Common room, their own not that far from his, so as to make sure people wouldn’t bother him. When he got inside, Sage jumped on him right away, fussing over him, with more questions she hadn’t yet thought of asking. While he tried to get rid of her, telling her that he was tired and needed to rest, Gabriel’s eyes briefly caught Kai’s. He was sitting near the fireplace, among his friends, a bunch of fifth-year Slytherin, Blaise Zabini, and Pansy Parkinson, practically drooling over him. Gabriel held Kai’s eyes for just a few seconds, then looked away and silently made his way to his dorm room, before any one of Draco’s crew, or worse, his cousin Theo, could confront him.

Gabriel and Kai didn’t see each other much during the couple of days that preceded Dumbledore’s funeral. Gabriel took extra care in avoiding all the places they could have run into each other. After a while, however, Gabriel realized that he was a bit too good at it. He began to wonder if he really was the one avoiding Kai or if it was actually Kai who was avoiding him.

At the funeral, Gabriel stayed close to Lux, Anya, and Ezra, the four of them sitting in the back, in silence. Once the ceremony was over, they stayed seated, each lost in their own thoughts. Eventually, Nyx, Lux’s brother, and Selene, Anya’s sister, came up to them, a weird and determined look in their eyes. They took Anya and Gabriel aside, and shifted his world once more.

“We want to talk to you about the Order of the Phoenix.”

From then on, Gabriel was filled with a new sense of purpose. He finally felt capable and useful again. In the train, his friends noticed that he was no longer the shell of himself. He wasn’t back to his old self either, however. Gabriel who once was an uptight teenage boy now stood tall, feeling more confident in himself than ever. Much to his surprise, his mother herself came to pick him up at King’s Cross. That in itself was enough to alert him. It was a rare thing for the great Reine Keita to do such a mundane task as picking up her son at the train station. His parents usually sent their butler, Vincent, to pick him up. As heiress of one of the greatest pure-blood family of Equatorial Guinea, and Equatorial Guinea Ambassadress for magic, Reine probably had more pressing matters than to pick up her son after school. And yet, there she was, face closed off, standing on the platform, beautiful and frightening, Vincent looking bored next to her.

The car drive back to the Notts’ manor was long. Gabriel sat still in front of his mother, waiting for the other shoe to drop. He figured that his recent fight against his uncle and his mother’s coming were linked events. He was genuinely scared of what would happen now.

“Your father’s brother came to visit last night. He told us the funniest story.” Her tone didn’t match her words at all. It was clipped, measured. Calculated.

Gabriel tried to school his face.

“It made me think of the way magic can trick people sometimes, even the most advanced wizards like us.” She paused, as if to think, then said, “Yes, your dearest uncle told us this very funny story, where he saw something that couldn’t, could _never_ be true. It was about you actually.”

She looked pointedly at him but Gabriel stayed silent. He knew playing dumb would be useless. He wasn’t being interrogated. He was being threatened.

“You see, your uncle was working and he swore he saw you somewhere you shouldn’t be. That’s where I told him that it couldn’t be true. Not only were you at school, but you also know very well your place. You know your rank and you know where you come from. You know what being a Nott and a Keita stands for and, most importantly, you know what it entails. You would never betray your rank or embarrass us by sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong, of course, boy. That’s what I told him. I also told him, of course, that you were a very smart boy and you would never dare doing such things because you knew, you _know_ , what would happen if ever came a day you messed up, if ever came a day you failed us or our status.”

She smiled at him afterwards, but it was twisted and Gabriel found himself at a loss for words. He just nodded, slowly, and stayed silent until the car pulled up in front of their manor.

That very same night, it didn’t take long for Gabriel to pack up his things and leave. He left a note on his bed, an unnecessary explanation about how he was starting his auror training the next day. It was a plausible lie; Gabriel did toy with the idea of joining the magical justice system after school. So it was a plausible lie but it didn’t matter. Reine knew why he had really left, and it wouldn’t take much longer for the rest of the family to figure it out too, if they hadn’t already. Gabriel had been disowned the moment his uncle had seen him and he had no other choice but flee.

He’s been living with Selene and Anya ever since. The sisters have their own flat in the heart of Manchester, hidden amongst the muggles. He is glad he has found a shelter at the Caulfields but it is hard on him as well. He doesn’t really know who is safe to contact anymore. Lux, despite being the one he wants to talk to the most, is a no-go. Her family, the Astors, are more likely than not following a similar path as the Notts. Nova isn’t a possibility either, the girl unaware of the trouble in which Gabriel has found himself, and to be fair, he is still mad at her. Ezra or Julian might be safe enough but Gabriel is still scared to risk it. Besides he wouldn’t be able to tell them much anyway. As for Kai, Gabriel is starting to question everything. Now an official member of the Order, Gabriel has discovered the deep links between Death Eaters and the Ministry. As much as he loves Miranda and William Alpert, he doesn’t think trusting them right now would be the best moves, as he knows they both have important Ministry jobs. And he sure doesn’t trust Kai with these secrets just yet.

“I know what you’re thinking about,” Anya suddenly singsongs behind him, bringing him back to the here and now.

Gabriel doesn’t turn away from the window, simply smiles as his eyes take in the cityscape. “And that would be?”

“You’re worrying,” Anya replies, booping Gabriel’s nose as she sits down on the window seat in front of him, linking their legs together.

“That wasn’t too hard to guess. Everyone is.”

“I don’t,” Anya replies with a nonchalant shrug. Gabriel looks at her, trying to read her expression, to find something, anything, that could betray that statement. He finds nothing but Anya’s constant casual amusement. “I think that Dumbledore had everything already figured out and that he told Harry everything. I think that as long as the Order keeps on working together, we’ll be able to help as much as we can and the war won’t last much longer.”

Gabriel listens to her and doesn’t know if he should envy her optimism or worry even more.

Anya has always been this light-hearted, ball of sunshine kind of girl. She could be a poster girl for the Hufflepuff house if they needed one, and Gabriel, and all of her friends, have always loved that about her. In these darker times, however, who knows where this line of thinking can lead Anya.

“So you don’t even worry about the others? Lux, Ezra, Julian?” he pauses, looking at her again, knowing this might be a low blow but unable to stop himself. “Sage?” Gabriel doesn’t really know what is going on between Anya and Sage and he is pretty sure the girls don’t really know either. What he does know is that Anya truly likes Sage, enjoys her company, appreciates her attitude, even when all of their friends don’t and that… Well, let’s say that Gabriel can relate to that.

“I trust Lux and the others to do the right things to protect themselves when things go south.” When, not if. Gabriel is a bit relieved, he has to admit. “I know Harry, Ron, and Hermione don’t plan on going back to school this year but Luna, Neville, and Ginny will. They’ll be fine.” She doesn’t mention Sage, Gabriel notices but he doesn’t comment on it. “Harry’s gonna be at the wedding,” she says all of a sudden.

“You really think he will take the risk?” Gabriel asks, raising both of his eyebrows.

“Well, they are transferring him to the Burrow,” she reminds him. “I don’t really see the ‘Chosen One’ hiding in a closet during the party. He’ll probably take some polyjuice or something.”

“Will we be able to talk to him?”

“I don’t think we’re important enough to know who he’ll be,” Anya replies with a mocking smile. “And even then, I’m not sure the wedding is the best place to harass him.”

“I don’t want to _harass him_. I just have questions.”

“You and the rest of the magic world. Come on, Gabe,” Anya laughs a little when he frowns, “Harry doesn’t like you. If he doesn’t tell Remus or Kingsley, what makes you think he’ll tell you?”

Potter might not like him but at least, he doesn’t hate him. They do respect each other and can have their moments once in a blue moon. That’s enough to make him want to take his chances. “I don’t know but I can try, at least, can’t I?”

Anya shrugs, looking bored. She has never liked debating for too long, especially things that don’t necessarily concern her. “I guess so. But I think you’d be wasting his and your time, and I think that these days, we can’t really allow ourselves to lose that time.”

“Is that why we’re going to a _wedding_?” Gabriel asks, with a smirk.

Anya shakes her head. “No. We are going to a wedding because we all need a bit of happiness sometimes. The whole Order will be there. And Nyx and Selene need to be there for Bill anyway.”

Gabriel shrugs and looks away, down at the city. “Whatever. I have a bad feeling about this.”

“You always do, Gabe. You always do.”


	2. July 31, 1997 - 275 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We back with another chapter!  
> Like the first chapter, this is still very much the introduction of the story. It's centered around what could be considered the main character of the story... Gabriel is also a main, of course, but the story is about her, really :D

Lux imagined her life post-battle very differently. After fighting Death Eaters alongside the Order, she thought that they would happily welcome her among them. In the same way as Harry, Ron, and Hermione, Lux and the others thought that they would get to actively participate in the resistance. Instead, all they seemed to get was a pat in the back and a stern “stay in school, kids”. They had complained, of course - Lux, Julian, Ezra, Neville, Ginny, and Luna - but the adults had dismissed them, arguing that the hospital wing wasn’t the place for such conversations. After that, it became near impossible to get a word in. Eventually they gave up and Lux decided to focus solely on her brother.

Once the Summer break had started, Lux began to spend even more time at Nyx’s. It was partly because she thought she could wore him out until he gave in, but mainly because her relationship with her parents was more tense than ever. Mr and Mrs Astor highly disapproved of her activities with the DA and her friendships with muggle-borns like Hermione, Dean, or Julian. Most of Lux’s time at home was spent fighting with them until Nyx offered to take her in, fearing that Lux would end up running away if he didn’t intervene.

So now Lux lives with Nyx, in York. Things are definitely better than when she lived with her parents in Merlin’s Vale - some sort of gated community for highly rich and reputable wizarding families - but it sometimes frustrates her that Nyx has taken so well his parental role. Navigating their new relationship isn’t an easy thing. They are as close as two siblings can be, but sometimes, Lux struggles accepting Nyx’s shifting roles. After all, Lux is used to them being in sync. She’s usually able to talk to him about everything and vice versa. They share secrets and never judge each other. So it can be hard for her to suddenly feel like Nyx is above her, an authoritative figure to whom she has to obey. It’s even harder to stomach when the orders are along the line of “do as I say, not as I do.”

More than that, Lux can see that her brother is worried and it worries her. She sees it everyday. She sees it when Nyx reads the _Daily Prophet_ , eyebrows drawn together and head shaking, or when she catches Nyx whispering to the chimney, quickly stopping once he realizes he’s not alone. She sees it right now as she watches Nyx pack his bag for the wedding, folding, unfolding, and folding again his suit. Lux wonders what is really happening. Nyx is usually good at hiding his fears so whatever is going on in his head can’t be good. He refuses to talk about it with Lux, however. All Lux knows is that Selene and Nyx joined the Order when their boss, Kingsley Shacklebolt, recruited them and that some plan for the resistance is in motion. She believes that Gabriel and Anya are involved as well but she can’t be sure, given that Anya keeps (not so) swiftly changing subjects and that she hasn’t talked to her best friend since they got back from Hogwarts.

Gabriel came to see her, the night of their return. The Notts and the Astors living in the same village allowed them, throughout their childhood, to see each other as they pleased, whenever the atmosphere in their homes got a bit too hard to handle. That’s why she wasn’t too surprised when she heard their signal on her window that night. She went out of her house to see Gabriel standing there, wrapped in a cloak despite the summer heat, bags at his feet, clearly ready to leave. It didn’t take much more for her to understand what was going on. Hidden in the darkness of the Astors garden, Gabriel told Lux about his mother’s reaction and how he feared for his life now that his family allegiance was clear. Lux listened to him and didn’t even think of mentioning the Order, seeing the clear worry in Gabriel’s eyes. Just like Nyx, Gabriel wasn’t one for vulnerability, even in only Lux’s presence. Seeing him like this, Lux began to realize that their future - Lux’s and all of the DA members’, the ones that had fought in the battle - wouldn’t be like anything she could have imagined.

With Gabriel gone, Lux felt trapped. She had no one left at Merlin’s Vale, no one in York outside of Nyx, who was working tirelessly anyway, and no safe way to talk with Ezra and Julian. Nova, Adelia, Sage, and Ash were probably the safest people she could have contacted but Lux realized, every time she tried to write to them, that she had nothing to actually say to them. She was still mad at Nova for turning her back on the DA, and as for the others, they hadn’t been properly friends in ages, as if something had broken between them from the moment she had joined the DA without them.

So, to everyone’s surprise, hers included, Lux finds herself impatient to get back to Hogwarts. At least there, she will be with the DA. They will be able to talk and plan and actually do something for the resistance. Perhaps they could even get the opportunity to help Harry on his rumoured quest. They don’t know what Hogwarts will be like come September. They are torn between the hope that nothing will change under McGonagall’s direction and the fear of having the school fall apart after Dumbledore’s death. One thing is sure, however; it should be interesting.

For now, though, Lux is stuck in York, spending her days reading, questioning her brother, and searching the _Prophet_ for news and important clues. It does get boring, Lux has to admit, and she mainly blames Nyx for that, since he refuses to let her do anything fun, including going with him to Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour’s wedding.

“Remind me why I can’t come with you, again?” Lux tries to ask nonchalantly, trying her best to look indifferent as she pretends to look at her nails. She doesn’t see it but she knows for sure that Nyx rolls his eyes before replying.

“Lux, come on, we’ve been over this.”

“I’m just saying! Ginny and Ron will be there, Luna will be there, I’m sure Anya, Hermione, and Harry will be there as well, why can’t I?”

Nyx stops his packing and comes to stand in front of Lux, who's sitting on the bed. “I told you. I have to stay for an Order reunion after. And it’s better for Mum and Dad if you stay away from the Weasleys or anyone they could disapprove of. I know it’s not very Gryffindor of me but I’m not a Gryffindor. I’d rather go their way to make sure they agree on having you live with me than go against them and have them force you back home. Besides, you hate weddings. I know you only want to come because of your little investigation on the Order. Ain’t gonna happen, chief,” he says, patting her head.

Lux pouts and crosses her arms over her chest. It’s getting tiring to hear the same thing over and over again but she imagines that that’s what you get when you ask the same questions ceaselessly.

“Fine. But why can’t I stay here? I stay home alone here when you work.”

“I know,” Nyx sighs, coming to sit down next to her, “but I’m usually only gone for the day. This time it’s for a couple of days, at least. I’ll feel better if I know you’re safe.”

“And that couldn’t be at Ezra’s or Julian’s?” Lux asks, going over the same questions over and over again.

“They both live with muggles. I told you, I’m taking you somewhere safer.”

“Okay, but who are these people exactly?” Lux asks, trying to catch a loophole or something that could turn the situation around and finally have things go her way.

“They’re colleagues. Miranda works for the Wizengamot and William at the auror training academy. Kingsley says that they’re trustworthy people if I ever need to reach out to people outside of the Order for whatever reason.”

“Like today?” Lux asks, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes, like today,” Nyx answers, not necessarily sternly but strongly, “because I don’t trust you around Order members. You already know too much for your own good and you can easily get annoying once you get going,” he finishes, standing up again and closing his duffel bag.

Miranda and William. Lux rolls the names around her tongue, whispering them to herself as if that would make her trust them. Something isn’t right. Nyx is worried and despite what he tries, and fails, to make Lux thinks, Lux can see, through his words and actions, that Nyx is preparing for the worst.

“Nyx?” Lux calls out before she bites her tongue, wondering if she should say something or not.

“Yes?”

 _What’s wrong?_ Lux wants to ask but she doesn’t, fearing it won’t help at all. Instead, she settles for a simple, “You’ll come pick me up soon, right?”

Nyx smiles at her. “Of course. I’m not going on honeymoon with them. I’ll be back before you know it. You don’t have to worry. Besides, William and Miranda are really nice people. You’ll like it there.”

Lux wants to point out that she only worries because Nyx seems worried but stops herself before any word can leave her mouth. If caring for Lux can ease Nyx’s mind, then Lux will let him do just that.

“Alright… Let’s go then,” Lux says with a sigh, standing up and picking up her bag. Nyx grabs his and follows her out out of the bedroom and the building. Once out and in the street of York, they Disapparate.

When they Apparate, Lux stumbles forward, feeling sick, still not used to travelling that way despite years of hitching a ride with her brother. She looks around and notices that they are now standing in the middle of a grove of trees, inside what seems to be a huge park.

“Where are we?” Lux asks, frowning.

“Richmond park,” Nyx replies, looking around as if he was searching for something.

“London?”

“Yup,” Nyx replies, popping the p and setting toward two trees forming an arch.

As they get closer, Lux starts noticing that beyond those trees stands a small palace. Eyebrows raised, she says, “I didn’t know people were allowed to live _inside_ parks.”

Nyx smirks. “They can when nobody knows they do. The house is hidden by magic to muggles.”

The palace stands in the middle of a clearing. Lux believes it must be amazing living there, away from the city, wrapped up in the quiet of the park. There’s a pound that surrounds the palace, crossed by a bridge that leads to the entrance. In the backyard, Lux sees the shape of a small Quidditch training pitch.

“Okay, you can leave me here if you want to,” Lux jokes, won over by the charm of the place.

Nyx chuckles and points toward a small plaque. “You’ll fit right in. This place seems as humble as you are.”

Lux follows her brother’s finger and reads out loud, “Richmond Palace: The House of Noble Brightness? Nice, where do I check in?”

Nyx chuckles again and knocks on the door, relieved to see his sister coming to terms with the idea of spending the weekend here.

A warm wave washes over the siblings and the door opens.

“Nyx! Good morning! We were expecting you!” a small, bubbly woman - Miranda, most likely - greets them. Despite her round and soft appearance, there’s a quiet authority to her that makes Lux believe Miranda is not someone to be messed with. “Come on in, come on in. And you must be Lux!” she says joyfully as she ushers them in. “Yes of course, Gabriel told us so much about you.”

At Gabriel’s mention, Nyx and Lux share a look, following Miranda inside, toward the living room.

“You know Gabriel?” Lux asks, surprised that he had never mentioned them.

“Yes, of course,” a man replies, coming down the huge stairway that stands in front of the entrance. There’s something familiar about his tall frame and angular face but Lux can’t quite put her finger on it. “Gabriel is like a son to us.”

The news makes Lux pause. She turns to Nyx to ask a silent question.

What the hell?

Nyx shakes his head, eyes wide open.

I have no idea!

The four of them make their way to the living room, Miranda welcoming them to sit on the couches. The room weirdly makes Lux think of the Gryffindor common room, with its tall ceiling and windows, the rich reds and browns of the décor, and the chimney that stands between two doors. The more she discovers about that place, the more she likes it.

“Thank you for taking Lux in, Miranda,” Nyx says once they’re all seated.

“Oh, don’t worry about it, Nyx. It’s my pleasure. In times like these, I understand your need to know your sister safe while you’re away. I would do the same for my son if I had to. Thank you, Grimoire,” Miranda then says to her house elf when he comes to bring them cut up fruits and a jar of lemonade. “I figured you would be hungry,” she explains as Grimoire bows to them and makes his way back to what seems to be the kitchen.

“Thank you, Miranda,” Nyx replies at the same time as Lux says “Thanks.” They both reach out for a glass and a few bites and start eating.

“You said you know Gabriel?” Lux asks bluntly after a while, taking everyone aback.

“Oh yes, my husband has been teaching him for the past, what, year? Year and a half?” Miranda turns to her husband for confirmation.

“Yes, yes. A talented boy, that Gabriel. Have you heard from him recently? I’m afraid I haven’t seen him since Dumbledore’s funerals.”

Lux frowns, starting to question the couple’s motives. She knew it all looked too welcoming, too nice to be true. Straightening her back, Lux speaks up, voice controlled. “He’s been quite busy, starting his new life after Hogwarts.”

“Ah. I see,” William replies, nodding along, not showing any sign of having caught onto Lux’s mistrust. “Busy times indeed, for all of us. Speaking of, I’m afraid I have to leave you. Duty calls. Miranda doesn’t work this morning, though, so she’ll help you get settled,” he tells Lux. “Nyx, I’ll see you in a couple of days, yeah?”

“Yes, see you in a couple of days, William,” Nyx replies as he shakes his hand. William then goes to shake Lux’s, kisses his wife on the cheek, and then leaves the room, Grimoire following behind with his coat and briefcase. Lux keeps her eyes on them the whole time, listening closely as he calls “Kaius! I’m leaving, see you tonight!” Lux focuses but if there’s a reply, she doesn’t catch it. The door closes behind him and then it’s silence.

After William has left, Miranda, Nyx, and Lux go on eating, Grimoire bringing them shortbread and madeleines. They exchange pleasantries about work and school, Nyx and Lux telling Miranda how Hogwarts is like while Miranda tells them about Durmstrang. After about an hour, however, Nyx starts to fidget and eventually announces he has to leave.  
“I have to meet up with Selene before we head over there. Thank you again for your hospitality, Miranda.”

“I told you, Nyx,” Miranda replies with a sweet smile, “It’s not a problem.”

“Okay,” Nyx says lowly before he turns to Lux. “You’ll be nice, okay?”

“I’m not five, Nyx. I know how to behave,” Lux says with an annoyed roll of eyes.

“Just checking,” Nyx jokes, wrapping his arms around Lux, hugging her close. “I’ll see you in a couple of days?”

“I’ll be right here,” Lux replies before pulling back.

Nyx straightens up, shakes Miranda’s hand, thanks her one more time for good measure and then he’s gone, following William’s steps.

The atmosphere feels a bit awkward now that Lux is left alone with Miranda. Lux looks around the living room then back at her. “Uh, where am I sleeping?”

“Oh yes, of course, your bedroom is upstairs, first door on your right. Grimoire set it up for you. I’ll come in a few minutes to show you around the house. Alright for you?”

Lux nods, guessing that Miranda, unlike her husband, sensed her mistrust, and wants to give her a bit of space. _Or_ she’s planning an ambush and needs to be alone for it…

Shaking her head at herself, Lux stands up. “Yes, thank you, Miranda.”

Miranda offers her another smile and Lux turns around, heading toward the stairs.

Upstairs, Lux is faced with several doors, one of which, on the right side of the hallway, is wide open - Lux’s room, then. She starts going toward it until another door, slightly ajar catches her attention. She knows that going through her hosts house isn’t the best way to “be nice”, as Nyx asked her not ten minutes ago, but she can’t help herself. There’s something fishy about all of this.

With one hand on her wand, Lux pushes the door open. To her surprise, however, someone is already in there.

“Alpert?”

The boy lowers his book and gapes at her when he realizes who she is.

“And what the hell do you think you’re doing here, Astor?” Kai Alpert asks her, with his usual holier-than-thou attitude that makes her want to punch him.


	3. August 1, 1997 - 274 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New chapter you guys! And the first cross-over between VIGD and Deathly Hallows! (First of many...) This chapter focuses on Gabriel, Anya, Selene, and Nyx. You'll see that POVs will change from chapters to chapters, each chapter focusing on each of the three storylines this story follows (Lux and Kai, Gabriel, and Julian)  
> Hope you enjoy!

When the wedding ceremony starts, the Caulfields, Gabriel, and Nyx sit together in one of the middle rows, among Bill’s other friends, just behind his family, a sea of redheads who look more or less the same. They watch with smiles on their faces as Fleur and Bill exchange their vows and clap happily when they share their first kiss as husband and wife. Once the ceremony is over, Nyx and Selene rush toward their school friend to congratulate him, while Gabriel and Anya stand back, looking around at the tent and commenting on the decorations.

After the ceremony, the guests are all asked to leave the tent so that they can set it up for the reception. When they get back inside, all the chairs have been moved. Where there used to be rows after rows of chair, there is now a large dance floor surrounded by dozens of tables. At the center of it stands a beautiful ice sculpture in the shape of a swan. As for the stage on which Fleur and Bill stood when they got married, it has been replaced by the food buffet and a bar, which both seem to overflow with colours and flavors.

The guests and family are all welcomed back inside then, as the newlyweds enjoy a bit of alone time before the rest of the festivities. Selene, Anya, Nyx, and Gabriel are led to a table with two other guys Gabriel has never met but understands were at school with Selene, Nyx, Charlie and Bill.

They start eating when Bill and Fleur reappear, about fifteen minutes later, and don’t stop for what seems to be hours. Then, the couple stands up to open the ball, dancing slowly to a soft, beautiful love song sang by none other than Valentina Weger, another one of Bill’s classmate who went on to become a famous singer in the wizarding world. When they hear her voice, Selene, Anya, Nyx, and Gabriel cringe a little.

When the second, more upbeat, song starts, people start joining them. Nyx practically drags Selene to the dancefloor and Anya follows behind them, trying to do the same with Gabriel, who only looks at her with a glare that can only mean “Really?”

About an hour later, Gabriel is at the bar, a glass of Fire Whiskey in his hand, tie loosened around his neck, and his eyes on Selene and Nyx dancing closely together, whispering in each other’s ears and giggling like two idiots absolutely in love.

“Ugh, I know what you think and I agree.”

Gabriel lets out a loud, surprised breath. He is used to it, but Anya’s gift for sneaking up on people unannounced still annoys him.

He glances sideways and looks down at her. She looks like a fairy with her loose, short green dress, brown gladiator sandals, and the flowers that adorn her french braid. Her cheeks are slightly red from all the dancing she’s already done with Luna, and she’s grinning brightly at Gabriel. Seeing her like that warms his heart; recent events aren’t really allowing them this kind of joyfulness these days.

“Didn’t we already have that exact same conversation like a week ago?” Gabriel asks her as he looks back at the dancefloor, looking, and feeling, tired.

Anya orders a glass of Mead and turns around to also face the dancefloor before answering. “Nah… You’re not thinking about the same thing now.”

Gabriel rolls his eyes. “You’re not a Legilimens, Anya.”

“I could be!” she protests, looking up at him, offended.

“Maybe,” Gabriel shrugs, “but you’re not. Besides,” he pauses and looks at her, a smile curling his lips, “ _I’m_ an Occlumens so…”

Anya stares at him unimpressed as he raises a teasing eyebrow at her.

“Ugh, fine,” she sighs as he turns toward the dancefloor once more, still smiling a little. “I still know that you think they look like idiots and you’re hella jealous.” Gabriel doesn’t react, shows no sign of even having heard her, so she goes on. “I know about your secret boo, Gabe.”

This time, Gabriel does he react. He doesn’t manage to school his face in time and Anya’s face break into a huge smile, looking like a cat who caught a mouse.

“My secret… boo?” he repeats slowly, trying to keep an even tone, having learned early on to never show any sign of weakness in the presence of one Anya Caulfield. She’s likely bluffing and he refuses to fall into her trap.

Anya’s eyes don’t leave his face as she replies, “Yeah, you know, your _boo_. Your babe, your lover… Your _boyfriend_ ,” she singsongs the last word, and it makes Gabriel tighten his jaw.

“Anya, I know what boo means.” He ignores her genuinely surprised face and adds, “I just don’t know who’s that supposed to be.”

Anya keeps on staring at him as if searching for something in his eyes. When it seems she won’t find whatever she’s looking for, she shrugs. “Well, me neither.”

“Okay…” Gabriel says slowly, looking at her, confused.

“I don’t know who the Mystery Man is, but I know that _there’s_ a Mystery Man.”

Gabriel raises his eyebrows, more relaxed now that he knows Anya knows nothing. “And what makes you think so?”

Anya takes a deep breath, then starts talking, hands flying everywhere. “Well, you’re weirdly curious about this whole thing for it not to be true, and also, you’ve been extremely worried about our friends going back to school and it’s weird because we know they’re part of the DA or that they’ll be protected by the ones in the DA so our friends should be fine so that means that you’re really worrying about someone who wouldn’t be protected by the DA so then I thought why would that someone not be protected by the DA if Gabe worries about them and then I thought well that must be because the DA doesn’t know about that someone, meaning our friends don’t know about that someone and they wouldn’t know because Gabe wants to keep that someone a secret and so I asked myself who people usually care about but want to keep a secret? And then it hit me. Secret. Lovers.” She says all of this very quickly, which makes Gabriel worry more about her breathing than the words she spoke. Once she has breathed long and deeply enough and taken a sip of her drink, he starts unpacking everything she has just said.

It’s a bit far fetched but knowing Anya, it’s not that impossible that she really went through this whole thought process.

“If that were true,” he asks, trying to sound detached, too curious now to stop, “who do you think it would be?”

Anya bites her lower lip, draws her eyebrows together, and starts thinking. Gabriel can practically see the wheels spinning behind her eyes. After a bit of them standing awkwardly in silence in front of the bar, Anya eventually says, “Okay.”

“Okay?” Gabriel asks, bracing himself.

Anya nods and then, she’s gone again. “Mystery Man is someone you like but you want to keep a secret from our friends, right? Mainly Lux I assume? It’s always Lux. So that’s someone we, as a group, don’t like, and usually, if we don’t like people it’s because someone within our group dislikes them. So. Who is someone that you, Gabriel Nott, known as Hogwarts Ice King, could actually _like_ , uh? That’s the tricky part. He has to be smart, right? And he has to have a pretty face because you’re shallow, like all of us, but it has to be effortless. He probably needs to be a bit of an asshole to actually be able to keep up with you and of course, he has to match your level of sass, snarkiness, and cynicism. He needs to be a bit more playful and fun than you are, though, to push your limits a bit. He also has to be a Slytherin, of course, because if he was in any other house, someone would have noticed something so…” she trails off, tilting her head from side to side, looking expectantly at Gabriel who can only stare back at her, hoping she doesn’t see the panic in his eyes.

“Hot damn she’s good” is the only thought going through Gabriel’s mind at the moment. He is completely taken aback by Anya’s always off-putting ability to think about this stuff and figure them out so quickly. She not only described perfectly who Gabriel could be attracted to, she perfectly described _Kai_ and that’s… He actually doesn’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. He is tired of keeping it a secret and Anya is probably the best person he could tell. Besides, Gabriel isn’t even sure they’re still together so things can’t get worse.

“So… ?” he says as well, knowing what she’s going to say but not really ready to hear it.

Anya studies his face and a small smirk slowly stretches her lips. “Kai Alpert.”

Gabriel sighs. He is beaten and can only recognize it. “Fuck, you’re good,” he lets out in annoyance, turning around, leaning his forearms on the bar, making a sign at the bartender to give him a refill.

“Oh my god, you and Kai _Alpert?_ ”

“Shhhh,” Gabriel hushes her, looking around them.

People are indeed staring at them but Gabriel guesses it’s more about the fact that he is a Nott rather than that he is apparently dating a guy named Kai Alpert. Even if most of the Order members know that Gabriel is on their side, there are many people here tonight that only know him as Gabriel Nott, son of Reine Keita and Vinicius Nott, known to be affiliated with suspected Death Eaters and, of course, members of a family associated with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named during the first war, in the same way as the Malfoys, the Crabbs, or the Goyles.

Gabriel drinks.

“I can’t believe you’re actually dating bloody Kai _Alpert!_ Like I literally can’t picture it.”

“Please don’t picture it,” Gabriel replies with a fearful frown that makes Anya chuckle.

“You know what I mean. I-”

Gabriel doesn’t get to know what she means. Suddenly, the music stops, the lights turn off, and everyone freezes as a Patronus appears at the center of the dance floor. It leaves its message, the voice coming out of its mouth belonging to Kingsley, and disappears right after.

“ _The Ministry has fallen. Scrimgeour is dead; They are coming._ ”

Everything seems frozen then everything is moving too fast. Gabriel can hear people scream. He sees them running and then there are people Disapparating and Apparating, throwing spells everywhere. He hears glasses breaking and cloth being torn apart. Anya takes his hand, holding it so tightly he fears his fingers are going to go numb.

He eventually thinks of seizing his wand and starts throwing all the spells he can think of. At one point, a group of people runs through them and Anya loses her grip on him. Gabriel tries to keep his eyes on her but a spell makes him duck and when he looks again, she’s gone.

“Anya!” he screams, as he searches for her black hair. He hopes she’ll hear him but it seems pointless, everyone calling out desperately different names.

He hears someone scream his name but it’s a man’s voice and Gabriel thinks he catches a glimpse of his uncle’s face. Turning around quickly, Gabriel starts running, praying he’ll find Anya, Selene, or Nyx on the way.

“Gabe!” he finally hears after a few minutes. This time, the voice belongs to Selene. She appears by his side, holding Nyx’s hand, who’s throwing spells all around them. “Where is Anya?”

“Here!” Anya yells before Gabriel can reply. She reaches them, out of breath and bleeding, but still so good at sneaking up on people.

“We need to go. Now!” Nyx yells at them, seizing Gabriel’s hand. Selene has Anya’s and grabs onto Nyx’s shoulder, letting him take charge. The last image Gabriel gets of the wedding is the ice sculpture broken into pieces on the floor and Fleur punching a Death Eater, in her torn wedding dress.

***

The quietness of the place they land in is a stark contrast with the chaos they’ve left behind at the Burrow. Gabriel has a hard time breathing, seeing himself back on top of the Astronomy Tower, his uncle hovering over him, a manic glint in his eyes, ready to strike -

“Gabe, come on, look at me.” Anya is shaking but her jaw is set and she looks determined as she stares into Gabriel’s panicked eyes. “Deep breath, okay? We escaped. We’re safe.”

“For now,” Nyx calls out as she walks around, making sure they’re alone.

Anya glares at him but doesn’t say anything, seeing that Gabriel is relaxing. She lets him go. “Where are we?” she asks.

“Richmond Park,” Nyx replies, coming back toward them.

Anya and Selene frown in confusion, Gabriel in fear. “Why?” he asks Nyx, tensing up again.

“That’s where I dropped Lux off.”

Gabriel tenses up even more and walks closer to Nyx, staring down at him. “Why?” he asks again, voice low.

“Kingsley said I could trust the people that lived there,” Nyx replies, pointing toward the small, hidden palace. “But of course, you already know that. Aren’t you like a son to them?” Gabriel is surprised by both this statement and his blaming tone. Nyx is the one to blame here.

“We can’t trust them,” Gabriel replies and Nyx shakes his head and looks away.

“Uh, what’s going on?” Anya asks, looking at her sister, who seems as lost as her, then at her friends.

“Kingsley told me that the people who live there, the Alperts,” Nyx explains, “were people I could trust if I needed help outside of the Order. I asked them to take care of Lux while I was at the wedding.”

“The Alperts?” Anya asks, looking at Gabriel who ignores her.

“What Nyx is not saying is that they work for the Ministry and could very well have betrayed us.”

“And you left Lux with them?” Selene asks, shocked by her boyfriend’s carelessness.

“ _Kingsley_ told me I could trust them, okay?” Nyx says again, looking toward the palace.

“It looks pretty calm over there,” Anya points out. “Gabe, you know them well?” she asks, pleading him with her eyes to stay calm so they can figure out what to do quickly.

Gabriel shrugs. “I don’t…” he trails off. He sighs and shakes his head. “William has been teaching me Occlumency for a couple of years now. They’ve always been kind to me.”

“They asked us about you, said you were like a son to them,” Nyx tells him, still on edge.

“I spent a lot of time at their place, okay?” Gabriel explains, looking at the palace. “A week into the lessons… William knew my name, my family’s past, and with the glimpse of memories he caught while teaching me, we started talking about my family. He seemed understanding. Him and Miranda, they welcomed me whenever I wanted.”

“Why did you cut ties with them, then?” Nyx asks, calming down. “William said he hadn’t seen to you since the funeral.”

Gabriel looks at Anya before replying. “I didn’t know he had seen me at the funeral. I was avoiding him.”

“Why?” Selene asks.

“I fought with their son. We said horrible stuff to each other. Or well, I did. I was too embarrassed and confused to face them. And it was right after I discovered my uncle was still very much a Death Eater. I didn’t think I could trust anyone that wasn’t part of the Order or the DA. And then, my mother threatened me and so I thought best to lay low. Miranda works for the Wizengamot. She was bound to run into my mother or my father at some point. And the Alperts… They don’t _know_ what’s going on exactly… or at least I thought so.”

“They know enough,” Nyx replied. They all looked at the palace, everything quiet and still around them. “If Kingsley trusts them, there has to be a reason.”

“So they’re safe? We can leave Lux with them?” Anya asks, looking at Gabriel.

“I think so, yeah,” he replies.

“I left her with them because they were the only people I knew my parents would approve of,” Nyx explains further, turning around to face the others. “The question is what do we do now.”

“If the Ministry has fallen, they’re gonna go after everyone they saw at the wedding. Going home is not an option,” Selene jumps in.

“So what? We run now?” Anya asks, offense clear on her face.

“We hide and we regroup,” Selene corrects her.

Anya waves her off and mumbles, “That’s the same thing…”

“Okay but what do we do about Lux?” Nyx asks, looking impatient.

“We leave her with the Alperts,” Gabriel replies. “I don’t see what else we could do.”

“Except that she lives with me now! I told her I was coming back in two days! You know her! She’ll flip if I don’t come back to get her.”

Selene, Gabriel, and Anya look between each other, hoping one of them we’ll have an idea.

“The less she knows, the safer she will be,” Selene points out. “The Ministry will interrogate her and your family; we can’t contact them.”

“She’s close to Harry, though. She’s part of the DA,” Anya points out. “Will they believe that she doesn’t know anything?”

“She has an alibi,” Gabriel replies. “We just need to pray she trusts the Alperts enough to not flip on them.”

Nyx shakes his head. “That’s not good enough. We have to warn her somehow.”

“If we go talk to her, she’ll want to follow us,” Selene argues, knowing Nyx doesn’t want Lux anywhere near the Order until she’s of age and done with school.

“We could talk to the Alperts, then?” Anya suggests.

“They’re not involved,” Gabriel replies harshly. “Kingsley might trust them but they’re not part of the Order. Telling them anything would be too risky.”

“How about we write them a letter and leave it under their door,” Anya offers.

“You want to explain everything in a _letter_?” Nyx looks unimpressed.

“You have a better idea?” Anya asks him, offended, arms crossed over her chest. “I’m not saying we have to write down every single detail but we could just give them a general explanation of why you won’t be picking up Lux any time soon.”

Nyx doesn’t say anything, just looks away, practically pouting. Gabriel sighs, and Selene rolls her eyes.

“Letter it is, then,” Anya concludes, conjuring up a quill and a roll of parchment and handing them to Nyx.


	4. August 2, 1997 - 273 days before the Battle. (part 1)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some more Lux in this chapter and the introduction of my baby Kai who I often call my greatest creation <3  
> Also! This chapter contains direct quotes from the book (the Daily Prophet article), obviously I don't own any of the rights and yada yada...

The house is dead silent when Lux wakes up. She listens closely at first, trying to hear if anyone else is up, but the only sound she catches is the sound of birds chirping, coming from the opened window.

She rolls on her side and reaches for her watch on the nightstand.

 _10 AM_ , it reads.

Lux groans, having always hated sleeping in, then sits up abruptly. Sleeping in has always put her in a grumpy mood, but this morning, it feels foolish and careless. Dangerous, even. She slept in. At Richmond Palace. At the Alperts’ house.

She doesn’t know these people. She only knows Kai Alpert and what she knows of him is far from reassuring. Her friends, especially Nova, Adelia, and Gabriel, the smartest of them, would judge the shit out of her.

Well. She guesses Gabriel wouldn’t. He is like a son to the Alpert, after all. He is probably used to sleeping in here.

 _So fucking weird_ , she thinks as she stands up, hearing the soft thud of an object falling on the bed. She slept with her wand, at least. She picks it up were it rests on the mattress and walks to the door. She opens it and slowly slips out of the bedroom, trying to be as silent as possible. She doesn’t know if Kai is still sleeping but she doesn’t want to risk it. She is barefoot and still wearing her summer pyjamas - a soft, satin tank top and shorts ensemble - but she doesn’t care. Lux has never been one for prudishness.

The staircase cracks when she steps on it but nothing happens so she goes on. When she gets to the kitchen, it is empty, except for Grimoire, the Alpert’s house elf.

“Good morning, Miss Astor,” Grimoire greets her when he sees her but his voice lacks its cheerfulness from yesterday, which makes Lux pause.

“Good morning, Grimoire,” Lux replies as she sits down at the dining table and waits for Grimoire to put a plate of hash brown and sausages in front of her.

“Miss Astor,” Grimoire asks timidly, after having put everything down. “Does… does Miss Astor wants to read the _Daily Prophet_?”

Lux frowns at the elf’s hesitation but nods. “Yes, thank you, Grimoire.” Lux learned from her brother that it was always a good idea to keep up with _their_ versions of things.

Grimoire quickly leaves the room and comes back just a few seconds later with the unrolled newspaper. He puts it down on the table, next to Lux’s arm and leaves again. Lux briefly glances at it and stops her fork halfway to her mouth when she sees the faces of her brother and her best friend, looking at her. 

**AUROR NYX ASTOR AND SON OF GUINEA AMBASSADRESS FOR MAGIC GABRIEL NOTT GONE MISSING  
AUROR SELENE CAULFIELD AND SISTER ANYA CAULFIELD WANTED FOR QUESTIONING**

“What the hell?” Lux says out loud, dropping her fork back into her plate. She ruffles through the newspaper until she can get to the full article, which displays pictures of Selene and Anya. The article doesn’t say anything really, simply that Gabriel and Nyx have allegedly disappeared and that they were last seen at the wedding with Selene and Anya. The journalist also points out that the Caulfields are primary suspects because their shared flat was found empty of clothes and belongings.

Lux goes from pure shock to anger in seconds. She balls up the newspaper in her hand, not caring that it isn’t hers, nor that there might be other articles worth paying attention to.

Heart trying to beat out of her chest, Lux feels a whole new wave of uneasiness wash over her. She knew they couldn’t trust these people. They knew about Gabriel, they asked them if they had heard from him and most importantly, they knew Nyx would be at the wedding.

Acting before thinking, Lux stands up.

“ALPERT!” she screams, alerting Grimoire who runs back into the kitchen.

“Miss Astor,” Grimoire calls her but Lux ignores him.

“ALPERT!”

She hears him sprint downstairs. He appears a few seconds later, looking dishevelled, sliding through the kitchen door, his wand in hand. His expression goes from panicked to confused when he sees Lux and Grimoire standing there, the newspaper still balled up in Lux’s hand.

“Good god,” Kai breathes, hand over his heart. He slides his wand above his ear and looks at Lux as if she had gone mad. “What the hell, Astor?” he asks, looking pissed now that he’s sure there’s no direct threat looming in his kitchen.

“Your parents,” Lux spits, equally angry. “They know Gabriel. How?”

“Who?” Kai asks, calming down, now simply annoyed. He sits down at the dining table as if he was taking place on a throne and calls for Grimoire.

“Yes, Master?”

“Can I get a plate of scrambled eggs? And beans on toasts?”

“Yes of course, Master.” Grimoire bows to him and goes to prepare his breakfast.

Kai sleepily smiles at him before turning back to Lux, looking bored. “Who’s Gabriel?”

“Gabriel Nott,” Lux says angrily, getting impatient. “Tall, black, Slytherin? He was in his seventh year last year? You have to know him.”

“I know a lot of people, Astor,” Kai tells her before pretending to search his mind. He shrugs. “Yeah, maybe. Rings a bell. Theo’s cousin, right? Yeah, I think I remember. What about him?”

“Your parents,” Lux says once more, probably red in the face by now. “They know him. How?”

Kai shrugs again and Lux wants to strangle him. “I don’t know.”

Lux sets her jaw. “Cut the crap, Alpert. They said he was like a son to them.”

Kai barely manages to hold back his surprised smile. He schools his face into a frown. “So? I don’t know what to tell you. My dad’s a teacher. He probably taught him and they got close.”

“And does teaching involves framing his students?”

Grimoire brings Kai’s plate then leaves the room again, still looking very nervous. Kai barely looks at his food, staring at Lux instead. “What?”

Without any word, Lux flattens the _Prophet_ and throws it down in front of Kai. Kai’s frown only deepens as he watches the front page.

“Is that true? They’re missing?” he asks without looking up, shuffling the newspaper quickly to get to the article, in the same way Lux had.

Lux pauses, taken aback by that question. “Wha- I don’t know! All I know is that your parents have this weird connection with Gabe, they asked us about him yesterday, they knew where my brother was going and with whom, and suddenly, boom! There’s an article about them in the _Daily Prophet_!”

“My parents would never hurt Gabriel,” Kai tells her, the gravity of his voice and expression of his face taking her completely by surprise.

She stares at him, mouth opening and closing again without any sound coming out. “I thought you didn’t know your parents knew him,” she eventually manages to say, staring back at him in confusion.

“I didn’t!” Kai quickly says but they both know it’s not convincing at all. He sighs. “Gabriel and I, we…” he pauses, not really knowing how to end that sentence. “We know each other.”

“You know each other?” Lux repeats slowly, unimpressed.

Kai sighs again, leaning back against his chair. “Yeah, it’s complicated. But I promise you, my parents have nothing to do with this. They would never hurt him. Like they said. He’s like a son to them.”

Lux doesn’t know what to make of everything. There’s a newspaper telling her that her brother and friends are missing and on the run, her guts are telling her that Kai’s parents have probably something to do with it, and she doesn’t know where they actually are.

“You should eat,” Kai tells her when he sees that she doesn’t have anything to add. “Mom always says the worst thing you can do is skip breakfast.”

Lux glares at him but sits down and starts eating again, thinking.

They’re eating in complete silence, when suddenly Grimoire comes back to the kitchen and clears his throat. “Miss Astor?”

“Yes?” Lux looks up from her plate and down at him. “What is it, Grimoire?”

“Grimoire doesn’t know if Grimoire should speak right now,” Grimoire tells her, looking sideways at Kai.

“What is it, Grimoire?” Kai asks. “Come on, speak up.”

“Mistress Miranda said that it was important for Miss Astor to know but Grimoire doesn’t think Master Kai is meant to hear…”

“Go on, Grimoire. If my mom didn’t say anything in particular, speak up.”

“Alright, Master,” Grimoire sighs. “Mistress Miranda told Grimoire to tell Miss Astor that her brother and her friends were alright.”

Kai and Lux look at each other then back at Grimoire.

“Did she see them?” Lux asks the elf who shakes his head.

“Mistress Miranda said she had a letter from Miss Astor’s brother. Miss Astor’s brother wants Miss Astor to be careful and he wants Miss Astor to trust Mistress Miranda and Master William. Miss Asstor’s brother said that Miss Astor should stay at Richmond Palace for as long as possible, that Miss Astor would be safe there. Miss Astor’s brother also said that Miss Astor shouldn’t say anything about Mister Gabriel, her friends, or her brother to anyone. Mistress Miranda said that Grimoire should tell Miss Astor all of that and that they would speak tonight after work.”

Lux stares at Grimoire when he is done. “Grimoire, do you have that letter?”

“Yes, Miss Astor. Mistress Miranda gave it to Grimoire and said Grimoire should keep it close and not show it to anyone.”

“Can you show it to me?” Lux asks, standing up and coming to kneel in front of Grimoire.

Grimoire shakes his head. “Mistress Miranda told Grimoire he couldn’t show it to anyone.”

“Show her the letter, Grimoire,” Kai says, his voice just slightly authoritative.

“Yes, Master,” Grimoire nods and gives the letter to Lux who struggles unfolding it, hands shaking. Kai comes to kneel next to her and together they read it.

The letter contains exactly what Grimoire just told them. Nyx writes that he won’t be able to pick Lux up, that he has to go with Gabriel, Selene, and Anya but that they’re fine. He tells Miranda that if she has questions, Kingsley might be able to tell her more. He asks Miranda to take care of Lux in his absence, that Miranda can tell their parents that Kai and Lux are close friends and want to spend some time together.

Kai and Lux exchange a disgusted look at that.

Lux finishes reading the letter then stares at it for a while, not saying a word. Kai eventually speaks up, visibly full of questions.

“So they’re fine?”

“Apparently,” Lux replies, voice full of disbelief.

“Why the hell is the _Prophet_ saying they’re missing? Or that your friends kidnapped them?”

Lux stands up abruptly at that, throwing the letter onto the table. “I don’t know! Since when does the _Prophet_ make sense?”

Kai shrugs, also standing up. “I don’t know. It just seems weird for them to say something like that when the people in question can easily debunk their theory,” he replies, picking up the newspaper and reading the other articles. “Uh?” he almost says right away, eyebrows drawn together.

“What?” Lux asks, arms crossed over her chest.

“Scrimgeour resigned yesterday. They appointed a new Minister.”

Lux’s eyes grow wide. “Who?”

“Pius Thicknesse,” he reads slowly before looking up. “You know him?”

Lux shakes her head no; Kai goes back to his reading.

Lux starts walking out of the kitchen when Kai speaks up again. “Uh, Lux?”

Lux sighs, turning around. “What, now?”

“You didn’t read the article following the one about Gabriel, did you?”

“No,” she confirms. “Why?” she asks, walking around the table to lean over him.

Kai doesn’t say anything, simply lays the journal down on the table.

A huge picture shows Dolores Umbridge smiling brightly at the photographs and right away, Lux feels her skin crawl.

> “‘The disappearance of Nyx Astor and, more importantly, the heir of the Keita family, Gabriel Nott, is the last drop,’ Dolores Umbridge declared this morning at the press conference, following the announcement of a new decree, regarding the status of wizards born from Muggle parents. ‘This terrible news only brings light to the fact that those of muggle birth have no respect for our World and our community. I’ve met with the new Minister right after his appointment and we have discussed the place muggle-borns should have in our society at length. We have both come to the conclusion that these people needed to be investigated to prevent crimes like the attack on Mr Astor and Mr Nott to happen again.’ Earlier, it was announced that the Ministry would produce a Muggle-born register. The Ministry of Magic is undertaking a survey of so-called ‘Muggle-borns’, the better to understand how they came to possess magical secrets. Recent research undertaken by the Department of Mysteries reveals that magic can only be passed from person to person when Wizards reproduce. Where no proven Wizarding ancestry exists, therefore, the so-called Muggle-born is likely to have obtained magical power by theft or force. The Ministry is determined to root out such usurpers of magical power, and to this end has issued an invitation to every so-called Muggle-born to present themselves for interview by the newly appointed Muggle-born Registration Commission.”

When Lux is done reading, Kai is already staring at her. Looking at him in horror, she asks, “What in Merlin’s name is happening?”

Kai shrugs, but if he is trying to look unbothered, he is failing, the shock clear in his eyes.

Lux’s mind goes straight to Julian, then Dean. She briefly thinks about Hermione, too, but she figures she wasn’t very likely to come back to school anyway. Julian however… Lux doesn’t really know what that means for her friend. Or what that even means period. Sure it has always been known that people working for the Ministry have often been muggle-born-phobic but it was an hidden truth, something people knew but didn’t want to acknowledge or talk about. A sort of reversed, racist, “don’t ask, don’t tell” type of thing that didn’t affect the law. Until now.

Lux collapses on the chair next to Kai with a sigh, looking defeated. “Seriously Kai, I don’t…” she trails off, her eyes shifting as her brain works out everything.

Of course Nyx and Gabriel aren’t missing and of course Selene and Anya haven’t done anything to them. The _Prophet_ , and by extension the Ministry, wants them to believe it however. Because it corroborates their narrative. Because it helps them enforce their anti-muggle-born policies.

She thinks about what Kai said earlier then. _It just seems weird for them to say something like that when the people in question can easily debunk their theory_. It does indeed. Unless they expect the people in question to stay quiet. Neither of them would stay quiet, however, not unless they were forced to. Then again, Nyx did say they were fine so Lux doesn’t see why they wouldn’t speak up.

 _Or perhaps_ , she thinks with horror, _perhaps that’s the point_.

They _don’t_ want them to stay quiet. They want them to speak up. They want them to come out of hiding.  
Lux feels something cold and heavy drop in her stomach as she think of the only people who could be looking for one of them. _Reine Keita. Anastasius and Vinicius Nott. Death Eaters._

“Who did you say was appointed as the new Minister for Magic again?” Lux asks, trying to control the tremor in her voice.

Kai shuffles through the journal to find the name again and reads it again. “Pius Thicknesse.”

Lux doesn’t know the name and it frustrates her more than anything. With only this info, she can’t know for sure if her theory is right.

“What’s going on?” Kai asks, probably able to read her fear on her face.

“I-” she starts but stops. She can’t voice her thoughts right now. Not to Kai Alpert. Not until she is sure of what she is starting to believe. “Nothing,” she says, shaking her head slightly. “I’m going to take a shower,” she goes on as she stands up. She looks at the journal one last time then walks out, for good this time.


	5. August 2, 1997 - 273 days before the Battle. (part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New chapter is here! And we introducing two new characters who have one of my favorite dynamic: Julian and Valentina <3  
> I have one more introductory chapter after this one and then the story will really get started!

It’s a pretty mundane Summer morning for Julian. His parents are running errands and his brother and sister are at a friend’s, which means that he got to sleep in.

He makes his way downstairs around eleven, pays the owl that delivered the _Daily Prophet_ when it gets there, then drops it on the table without reading it. He figured early on that it was better if he allowed himself a bit of time, every morning, to live his life as an unsuspecting muggle before diving back into the war. He keeps his wand with him at all time, still, just in case. He can use magic outside of school grounds, now, but he doesn’t do it too often, prefering to do most stuff the muggle way. He mostly uses it when he feels particularly lazy or when Nova pesters him about practicing.

They spent the month of July together. Nova came to stay with them at the Rose’s summer house in the south of France. It was both so weird and amazing for Julian to see Nova interact with his parents and siblings, his girlfriend very curious about the muggle life. Julian and Nova took advantage of their new majority to entertain the ten-year-old twins, Olivia and Adrian, with simple, prettier than useful, spells. It was at that moment that Julian fully realized and understood how important magic was to Nova. Unlike him, she had always lived with it, in it, and it was a part of her - of her identity, sure, but also of her. The law that forbade underage wizards to use magic outside of school had been annoying at first, especially after his first year, but Julian quickly got used to it, already accustomed to living life without it. Judging by Nova’s quiet relief every time she used her wand, however, it was clear that to her, living without magic was hard.

As their month together passed by, Julian often asked Nova questions about her magic and what life after Hogwarts would be like. It was mostly because he was genuinely curious, but also because it helped keeping his - and probably her - mind off of what had happened before the beginning of the summer break. Julian sometimes had nightmares but he tried to hide it, not really wanting to talk about this with Nova. It wasn’t that he was mad at her. He wasn’t as petty as Lux and Gabriel, nor as self-righteous as Ezra, but it did bother him and that bothered him. Nova had made her choice, just like he had done his, and it seemed pointless to fight her on that. But the way it happened, or at least the way Anya and Ezra reported it… Julian didn’t recognize his Nova. And he was scared of what that could mean.

They came back from France a week ago. Nova went back to her mother’s house in Leeds, and Julian came home with his family, in London. It was harder to part ways, now that they were dating, but Julian tried to reassure himself that they only had one month left of Summer break.

In the meantime, he entertained himself the way he had every summer; doing his homework, thinking about the war, and watching TV - not necessarily in that order.

Right now, Julian is watching TV. He lays in his Star Wars pants and black tank top, sprawled out on his couch, watching Spongebob, his bowl of cereals balanced on his stomach. He is laughing at a gag, his spoon halfway to his mouth when someone suddenly starts hammering at his door. The noise makes him startle, making him spill his milk on himself.

“Fuck, shit, fuck,” he curses as he pats the milk that splashed on his chest and gets up, putting his bowl on the coffee table.

“Hello?” he says as he opens the door, freezing when he sees who is there.

She has changed since he last saw her. For lack of better words, she looks more... expensive. Her hairdo is even more sophisticated than before, a mix between a bun and braids, and her coat looks straight out of Princess Diana’s closet.

“Valentina?” Julian lets out, looking completely dumbfounded, his hand reaching for his wand.

Valentina notices the gesture and smiles sadly. “Can I come in?”

Julian frowns. “I don’t think-”

“Julian, please. It’s urgent.” Her voice is pleading and that takes Julian by surprise even more.

He studies her face then slowly opens up the door for her. She whispers a soft “Thank you,” then walks inside and lets Julian close the door.

“Your family isn’t here?” Valentina asks as she looks around the room.

The Roses house is always messy, between the twins “inventions”, Julian’s stuff, and his parents books. But today is even worse than usual. The Roses haven’t had time to clean up since they came back, and Julian feels a bit embarrassed receiving the great Valentina Weger in those conditions.

“The twins are at a friend’s, my parents are at Ikea,” he replies, his tone clipped, not realizing nor caring that Valentina probably doesn’t know what Ikea is.

Valentina still nods then looks back at him. Julian is very aware of the fact that he stands in his knickers but he can’t care right now.

“What are you doing here?” he asks, voice still firm, almost biting. He refuses to show her that he is scared.

“Did you read the _Daily Prophet_ this morning?” she asks him, something that looks like pity in her eyes. Julian doesn’t like that look.

He shakes his head.

“I see,” Valentina replies with a nod. “Well, you’re in danger,” she says as if she was telling him that it would be sunny today.

He looks at her, unimpressed.

Julian met Valentina Weger for the first time when he was thirteen years old and he doesn’t think he’ll ever forget it.

It was early in their third year when Sirius Black was the talk of the town. Julian joked that it sounded like a cool band name which led Ezra to wonder if singers and bands were a thing in the magical world. Sage and Nova were quick to answer that it was indeed and that the greatest, their absolute favourite, was Valentina Weger, to which Anya casually replied that her sister knew her. The girls went insane after that and Anya promised to try and organize a meeting.

It happened during the Easter holidays of that same year. The whole gang, Anya, Lux - who also already knew Valentina - Ezra, Nova, Adelia, Ash, Sage, Gabriel, and Julian, all took a train from London to Torquay where Valentina lived at the time. She welcomed them on the steps of her house, wearing a worn out Ravenclaw jumper, a black skirt, and knee-high socks, her black hair tied into a messy bun that looked about ready to collapse. She looked like she had just gotten out of bed and yet, Julian had never been more intimidated than in that moment, her grey eyes and small smile making her look as if she knew your deepest, darkest secrets and insecurities.

She lived in a huge mansion with several bedrooms and bathrooms. “For all my artists friends who often stop by,” she had explained to them. And they did stop by. During the two weeks they spent at Torquay, Selene came by, but also a few friends of Valentina, who came to perform music until late at night, cooking and eating at all hours, and entertaining the group with funny stories.

Julian loved it there. First of all, because it reminded him greatly of his home town, Nice. Also because he felt weirdly free there, with the doors and windows almost constantly open, and the good mood that seemed to constantly fill the atmosphere. But mostly, it was because of Valentina herself. Ezra and Julian fell completely in love with her. She fascinated them and Anya teased them ceaselessly when she realized they were following her everywhere. Valentina sort of took them under her wing and invited them to spend some more time at her place during the summer. Lux, Selene, Nyx, and Anya came along, and soon enough, the seven of them formed a sort of found family.

When He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named came back, however, at the end of their fourth year, things began to change between them. It wasn’t really perceivable at first, but Valentina’s links with the Ministry slowly became tighter and fights began between her, the Caulfields, and eventually the rest of the group. The situation became even worse when she started being seen with people the Order suspected to be Death Eaters, like Yaxley or Runcorn, and Valentina, tired of “being judged” - her words - cut ties with everyone. It happened during the Christmas Break of Julian’s fifth year and that was the last time any of them had seen her.

Until now.

“Uh, yeah. Have been for the past three years, but sure, thanks,” Julian says bitterly, crossing his arms over his chest.

Valentina takes a step closer and flinches when she sees Julian take a step back. “Julian, you have no idea what’s going on at the Ministry right now.”

“And I’m sure you do. I still don’t get why you’re here.” He looks at her expectantly, his jaw set, feeling his anger bubbling under his skin.

Valentina can’t help the smile that curls at her lips. Julian has changed so much since she last saw him. His huge mane of curls has been shaved into a buzz cut, he has a five o’clock shadow on the bottom half of his face, his already brown skin has turned a shade darker, probably due to the sun, and he has gained a bit of muscle. He is still as short as ever, however, and the thought makes her smile even more. Julian frowns at the sight.

“I know you think I betrayed all of you but will you please at least try to listen to me before I tell you why I’m here?”

Julian simply shrugs. He refuses to say more than a few words or move more than a few inches, lest he lets his guard down and lets Valentina see how deeply her being here affects him.

“Thank you,” she says with a nod. “I came here because the Ministry is coming after you.”

Julian’s eyes widen at the news, having not expected that. “After me? Why?”

Valentina bites her lower lip, looking as if she’s wondering if she should say something or not. “The Ministry released several statements this morning. First, Scrimgeour resigned. A new Minister, Pius Thicknesse, has been appointed. They also announced that Gabriel and Nyx have gone missing.”

“What?” Julian lets out, staring at Valentina, as if ready for her to scream “April fools!” despite being in August.

“There’s no way this one is true,” she reassures him, “especially given that they’re claiming that Anya and Selene, of all people, kidnapped them.”

Julian gapes at Valentina, then very eloquently says, “What the fuck?”

“I honestly have no idea what their motives are behind this news besides the third statement.”

“What’s the third statement?” Julian asks her.

“They’re using this alleged attack and kidnapping to validate their new decree. The Ministry is investigating every Muggle-born.”

“What? Why?”

“They claim that their research has proved that magic is an heritage and that people with no wizarding ancestry stole their magical powers.”

“So what? They’re gonna arrest all of us?”

Valentina shakes her head. “It’s not that simple. They know there would be an outrage if it went like that. They’re inviting muggle-borns at the Ministry for an interview.”

“And then, they arrest all of us when we can’t prove we have wizard ancestry?”

“I don’t think it’s their main goal. They know muggle-borns aren’t going to cooperate. I’m pretty sure they’re _hoping_ that you won’t. They want you to run away so that they can publicly arrest you, with the law behind them to justify their acts.”

“Well of course, we’re gonna run. I mean I…” Julian stops, feeling his heart rate quickens. “Val… I can’t prove I have wizards in my family.”

“I know. That’s why I came.” When Julian frowns, she adds, “I want you to come with me.”

Julian laughs at first then stops when Valentina looks at him, confused. “Wait, you’re serious? Val, come on… You’re basically the Ministry spokesperson. There’s no way I’m coming with you. Besides, I have to talk to Nova, Ezra, Lux… I can’t just up and leave, especially not when Gabe and Nyx are missing!”

“You have to,” Valentina pleads, looking around the room. “Don’t you get it? There’s going to be a letter for you soon, asking you to go to the Ministry for an interview. What will you do, then? Wait for them to take you?”

“Of course not,” Julian intervenes but Valentina pays him no attention.

“And what happens to Nova once they send the snatchers to come looking for you? They’ll go to her, to Ezra, to Lux. You really want to risk it?”

“So what? I leave my family, my friends behind and I go hide in your closet? That’s the plan?”

“Of course not. First I’ll help you hide your family. They still have that house in France, right? France should be safer for them.”

Julian stares at Valentina. He doesn’t know if he’s supposed to be scared, confused, or angry so he settles for a mix of the three. “Why did you come to me, Val? How do you know all of this?”

Valentina drops her shoulders with a sigh and stares at Julian. “Because I’m a spy.”

Julian expected everything but that. “I’m sorry, you’re a what now?” he asks, batting his eyelashes quickly in disbelief.

Looking defeated, Valentina turns around and drops on the couch. Julian follows her and sits in front of her on the coffee table.

“I used to get into a lot of trouble when I was at school,” she starts. Julian raises his eyebrows, struggling to connect the dots together but keeps quiet, having promised her to listen. “I spent more time in detention than I would dare to admit. I was the queen of gossips and eventually, Dumbledore started keeping a close eye on me. In my last few years of study, I would be sent straight to his office instead of going to detention. He was kind to me, Dumbledore. He always tried to understand me, asked a lot of question about my life, my family, my hopes and dreams. When I started singing in clubs, he would come to see me. He liked to say that he was my first and biggest fan. He encouraged me a lot, introduced me to important people who boosted my career and before I knew it, I was part of the elite, attending parties thrown by the most influential and ancient wizarding families you could think of. Dumbledore was very interested in what I had to say about those parties. I guess I started spying on them and the Ministry before I even noticed it. It was always so easy to talk to him. He had a way to make you feel special… It became official the summer after the Tri-Wizard Tournament. After You-Know-Who came back, Dumbledore became angsty, especially because Fudge refused to believe it. That’s when-”

“That’s when you fought with Selene,” Julian says out loud, realization dawning on him.

Valentina nods sadly. “That’s when Dumbledore officially asked me to spy on the Ministry and the families for him. For two years I was out practically every night networking, doing my best to get invited to all the fundraisers and private parties of the United Kingdom. For the first year, Dumbledore was the only person I could trust, the only one to know what I was really doing. Then, the second year, he introduced Kingsley to me. Now, he’s the only one I answer to.”

“I don’t get it. Why did you accept? Why didn’t you stop after his death? Why don’t you stop now? The others would understand.”

Valentina shakes her head and looks down at her hands on her lap. “Because I’m in too deep. I got too involved. I’m in so deep that I can tell you where the Ministry stops and where the Death Eaters start. These days, it’s a pretty useful skill.”

Julian sighs and runs a hand over his short hair. “What’s the plan, then? I go with you but I don’t hide? How does that work? What do I tell my family?”

“You tell your parents and your siblings the truth. I assume you’ve already told them about You-Know-Who?”

Julian nods. “Yes, of course.”

“Then, I’ll wait here with you and when they all get home, we’ll tell them. Together. And then you’ll come spy with me.”

“I’ll come spy with you,” Julian replies, nodding along. He stands up, still nodding and starts pacing. “Sure yeah, just wait a second, I just need to pack my James Bond kit and then I’ll be right down. For fuck’s sake, Val!” he says loudly, stopping and turning toward her. “You must be out of your goddamn mind if you think I’m just going to pack my stuff, say goodbye to my family and follow you on your spying adventures!”

“What other option do you have?” Valentina asks him, staying calm as Julian seems to lose his mind.

“I don’t know! But I… I can’t be a fugitive or a spy or whatever! I’m barely seventeen, I still have a year of school left, and I-I don’t even know how to whistle for Christ’s sake!”

Valentina ignores the lack of relevance of that last statement and goes to Julian, putting two reassuring hands on his shoulders. “Julian. Look at me. It killed me cutting ties with all of you. I haven’t seen Lux and Ezra in years and I miss them. I missed you. I felt helpless hearing everything that was going on at Hogwarts, between Umbridge and Snape and that army you guys apparently joined. But right now... Right now I can actually do something so please let me help you. Come with me.”

Julian looks at Valentina, studying his options. In theory, this all sound like a great plan. Becoming a spy would be a dream come true. Right now, however, it all sounds insane. Not an hour ago, he was still wondering what he was going to do with his day, watching cartoons, and eating soggy cereals.

“How would that work exactly? Me coming with you, I mean?” Julian asks again, feeling himself giving in to the idea but still very scared.

“The best option would be for you to drink polyjuice potion and become my new assistant.”

Julian stares at Valentina, mouth agape, sighs then goes to collapse on the nearest seat available. He looks at her again and says, “I know I’m seventeen and it’s like eleven am but I think I need a drink.”


	6. August 2, 1997 - 273 days before the Battle. (part 3)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here comes chapter 6! This is the last of what I call my "introductory chapters". We're with Lux and Kai once more, following the rest of their day after chapter 4.

Lux is practically mesmerized by the movement of her coin moving in the air as she keeps throwing and catching it, again, and again, and again.

She can’t remember the last time she has used it. During her fifth year, the coin used to be the thing she paid the most attention to, waiting for the next DA meeting to be announced. During her sixth year, however, it became almost a shameful thing, a reminder of the call she hadn’t responded to when Harry and the others went to fight at the Ministry. Now, the coin has become a symbol of hope. Since she has gotten back from Hogwarts, she keeps it in her pockets at all times and waits for a message to be sent; one that would let her know what is happening and what is being planned. Truth be told, she doesn’t except Harry, Ron, nor Hermione to use it but perhaps Ginny, Neville, or even Luna might send something to let them know what they plan for September. Nothing comes, however, and Lux is left alone in the guest room of Richmond Palace, throwing it in the air and wondering if she should tell the DA about what happened to her brother and their friends, or about the Alperts.

She knows not to expect anything else about Nyx, Gabriel, or the Caulfields until Miranda comes home from work but it’s hard for her to focus on anything else. Plus there is the new Muggle-born decree that makes her worry about Julian, and Dean, and Hermione, and really, her life has become a whole, entirely new mess since Nyx left her at the Alperts.

She’s been laying on her bed, restless, for fifteen minutes, when she decides that she can’t take it anymore. Catching her coin and putting it back in her pocket, she gets up and makes her way to the door. She has barely reached it when she hears two knocks. Opening the door right away, she faces a startled Kai who probably didn’t expect her to answer so quickly.

They stare at each other, torn between their shared dislike and shared boredom until Kai shrugs. “You like Quidditch, right?”

Lux starts to frown but then smiles at him, stunned but amused. “Sure,” she replies.

***

“So that’s my training pitch,” Kai tells her when they get to the backyard Lux caught a glimpse of on her first day here. It’s a tiny version of a Quidditch pitch, with more rings than a regular one usually counts and a kitchen garden at the bottom of it. “My father built it for me when I started getting serious about Quidditch,” he tells her, as he leads her to a small, adjoined shack. Inside, they find several brooms and broom cases, a trunk for the different balls, and other Quidditch accessories for training and maintenance.

Lux looks at Kai, and takes him in, realizing how at home he looks, how easily he fits in that environment. It’s like an out-of-body experience, realizing that she’s actually spending the month at Kai Alpert’s house and that she’s about to _play_ with him. For probably the first time ever, she takes the time to think about how she doesn’t actually know anything about him.

To anyone who doesn’t know Kai, he is easily despicable. When he arrived as a first year during Lux’s second year of school, she and her friends put him in the “we dislike him” box right away. Aside from Julian, they all knew that the Alperts were an old, pureblood, wizarding house, originally from Germany, who used to be linked to the British royal family. Because of those ties, rumours about the Alperts’ arrogance spread easily and Lux can understand why now, what with their home being a literal palace in the middle of a royal park, and their motto being “The House of Noble Brightness”. Kai didn’t really help to stop those rumours either. Quickly sorted into Slytherin, it was clear to Lux and her friends that he was more of a Zabini-type rather than a Sage -or Gabriel- type. The years that followed didn’t necessarily help his reputation among Lux’s group of friends. Ginny, and later Luna, often complained about how cocky he was and how much the professors loved and praised him for being top of his classes. Things really heated up between Kai and the group when he joined the magical academic decathlon team. Nova was the president and it was her turf, so when Kai began walking on it, she decided he was her nemesis. Lux will forever remember the day Kai was invited to the Slug Club and Nova wasn’t. Gabriel had tried to point out that he was invited as well and would gladly give her his place but it had only pissed her off even more. And, of course, to top it all off, Kai was Slytherin’s Quidditch captain and star chaser, which helped neither his cockiness nor Nova’s hatred of him.

Everything seemed to come so easy to Kai that it was hard not to envy and dislike him. Especially when he made it look so effortless and acted so proud, teasing and bragging to people like Nova, who failed to hide their dislike.

Because of all of that, Lux always saw Kai as a mini-Malfoy, born with a silver wand in his hand, everything being handed to him, and him enjoying and rubbing it in people’s faces.

Spending time with him at Richmond Palace, however, is making Lux see him under a new light. First, she was struck by the love, affection, and playfulness that the Alperts constantly displayed around each other. Kai was loved but didn’t seem to be spoiled rotten like Malfoy. It was also a huge but pleasant surprise when Lux saw him interact with their house elf. Lux had always assumed, from spending time at the Notts, that families like the Alperts were bound to treat their elves awfully, Gabriel being an exception, as always. And of course, being home alone with Kai, Lux had noticed how hard he actually worked. Kai had spent most of yesterday training outside and when she had gone down for dinner, Lux had been surprised by the state of the living room desk. There was a messy pile of books on it, some she recognized from her sixth year, but also some from her brother’s bookshelf that she had never bothered to read. One of them was open and next to it were set a feather, a bottle of ink, and parchment rolls.

“You can take whichever you want,” Kai tells Lux, bringing her back to the here and now. “We use those for training,” he adds, taking one of the brooms that isn’t in a case.

Lux looks at the different brooms and notices they’re all pretty old, the most recent one being a Nimbus 1998. She also glances at the broom cases, noticing that a purple one sits higher than the other, protected from the dirt and the dust. On it, traced in golden, cursive letters, is written “Kaius Lieven Alpert”. She takes the Nimbus 1998 and follows Kai to the pitch. When she gets there, she looks around, in awe of the scenery. There’s a wooden path traced through the kitchen garden where she can see Grimoire working, and it leads to a wooden, circle terrasse from which she guesses they can safely take off and land without disturbing the plantations. Outside of the pitch, the clearing spreads a bit more but trees surround it all, acting as ground delimitation for the property.

Lux gets on her broom with one single thought: staying here a bit longer might not be as hard as she first thought.

They play for a few hours, Kai going easy on Lux. They take turn guarding the rings and shooting, giving each other small challenges. After a couple of hours, Grimoire calls them, telling them he prepared food for them. They land back into the terrasse and head toward the garden table where the elf put down sandwiches, crisps, sauce, and a jar of water with two glasses.

“Ugh, I’m starving,” Kai mumbles, throwing himself on one of the chairs and shoving one of the sandwiches in his mouth, at the same time.

Lux looks at him, amused to see that side of him, Kai always rather proper at school. She sits in front of him and starts eating a few crisps.

“You’re not too bad,” Kai points out after a few seconds of silence. His tone is cordial, almost friendly, and Lux finds it easy to match it when she answers.

“For a beginner, maybe,” she shrugs, looking at the inside of her sandwich before biting it. “Lots of my friends play so I tend to play with them but I’d rather watch.”

“Right. You’re friend with Nova Carlisle, right? She’s good.”

Lux huffs out a laugh, having not expected Kai to compliment Nova of all people, knowing her friend could never do the same.

“Yeah, she is. I don’t know how she’d react if she heard you say it.”

Kai smirks around his sandwich. “She doesn’t like me, uh?” he asks but Lux can tell he knows the answer very well.

“Understatement of the century.”

Kai snorts and shakes his head, visibly very amused by Nova’s passionate dislike of him. “You follow any team?”

“I’ve always liked the Holyhead Harpies, of course,” she replies, smiling when Kai repeats “of course” with a slight tilt of his head, “but I was actually rooting for the Paris Princes during the Champions’ League this year. I was very happy for them when they won. They’ve been after it for so long.”

Kai nods and laughs at the same time. “It was a huge relief, yeah.”

“It’s your team?” Lux asks, thinking she remembers vaguely seeing a poster of them in his room when she came in, the first day.

Kai nods. “Uh uh. Who would have thought we’d have something in common.”

“Shocker, I know,” she deadpans. He smiles at her and she shakes her head, smiling as well.

They keep eating, talking about the Paris Princes season and the upcoming championship. The friendly chat is a nice break from all their worrying and wondering. Once again, Lux is shocked to see how easy it feels to be like this with him here. She wonders how it will be like once they get back to Hogwarts.

“Hey,” she suddenly says when Kai is rubbing his hand clean over the plate. “You want to play a muggle card game?”

Kai looks like he expected anything but that but he nods. “Sure.”

Lux rushes upstairs to get the two card decks she brought with her and comes back down. “Okay, so it’s called Speed. Basically, what you need to do is this.” She explains the rules to him, going over it a few times before they finally start playing. Kai is terrible at it but he seems not to mind it so much, getting mostly annoyed at his slowness. Lux, on the other hand, finds herself enjoying her superiority more than she’d care to admit, her Gryffindor side taking great pleasure at beating not only a Slytherin but especially _Kai Alpert_.

They play for a few more hours, Lux teaching other card games to Kai and beating him every time. Eventually, they retrieve to the living room, Lux going on to play cards by herself and Kai picking up a book. She’s shuffling the deck when she catches the book he is holding.

“Gilderoy Lockhart? Really?” Lux asks, entirely too amused by the sight. She doesn’t think she’s ever met a man who likes Lockhart, and especially not one as prideful as Kai. To her great surprise and amusement, he blushes.

“Shut up, he writes well.”

Lux laughs. Loudly. And it feels like the first time in forever. Kai pretends to be vexed but she sees the small smile on his lips.

Yeah, she really could get used to this.

They stay in comfortable silence for a while, each lost in their own activity, Lux kneeling at the coffee table and Kai lying sideways on the couch in front of her. She is starting a new round of Patience when he stands up. He goes to the window and pushes one of the curtains aside.

“My parents are here,” Kai tells Lux. “And they’re not alone.”

At that, Lux stands up as well, forgetting her cards on the coffee table. When she gets to the window, she sees that there are indeed five figures walking toward them. Two she recognizes as Kai’s parents and two she recognizes as her own, carrying something big and heavy. A trunk?

“Who’s that?” she asks Kai, pointing at the fifth man.

Kai shrugs. “Dunno.”

The door opens and Miranda immediately calls for them. Kai replies back.

“We’re in here.”

William and Miranda are the first to enter the living room and go to stand in front of the fireplace. Lux’s parents follow them, Pamela and Charles Astor, looking as stern as ever. They look at their daughter and go to sit on one of the couches. Kai looks at Lux, Lux looks at them. The fifth man comes in and stops in the doorway, looking around at the room.

“You have a really nice house, William,” he says before turning toward Lux. “You must be Lux? Charles’s daughter?” When she nods, he goes on, stretching his hand toward her. “I’m Harraps Grimm, I work for the Ministry. I have a few questions for you. Do you mind?”

Lux looks at his hand but doesn’t move to shake it, arms crossed over her chest. “Is it about my brother?”

Grimm looks at the Alperts, then the Astors, then back at her. “It is.”

Lux gulps, looks down, then back up. “Okay.”

Grimm claps his hands together and turns back towards the adults. “Good, perfect. Miranda, I’ll have a glass of Fire Whiskey, please. Now, young girl, if you can sit down, we’ll start. Boy, do you mind leaving us?” Grimm then asks, finally acknowledging Kai, who looks at him with raised eyebrows and haughty eyes.

“No,” he says simply.

Grimm looks taken aback by his reaction but doesn’t seem offended, rather amused. “Alright…”

“Kaius, please,” William starts but Kai crosses his arms over his chest.

“If this is about Gabriel, I want to hear it,” Kai replies, staring at his father.

William sighs before saying, “It’s fine, Harraps. Kaius can stay.”

Lux looks away from her parents to stare at Kai, but this time it’s him who pointedly ignores her.

“Alright then, just that Fire Whiskey, and we’ll start.”

Miranda sends Grimoire to get drinks for Grimm and Lux’s parents and then everyone settles around the coffee table. Lux goes to sit between her parents, feeling more anxious than ever, Kai goes to stand next to his, and Grimm sits on the remaining couch, getting out a Quick-Quote Quill.

“Okay,” Grimm sighs. “Tell me, Lux. When is the last time you spoke to your brother?”

Lux bites her tongue, coming up with her full reply before giving it to him. “Two days ago, when he dropped me off here for the weekend.”

Grimm nods and the quill starts working. “What did he say to you?”

Lux shrugs. “Just to behave while I was here and that he would come to pick me up in a couple of days.”

“So today?”

“Tomorrow,” Lux corrects and the look on Grimm’s face, focused, makes her think she perhaps said too much already.

“So he planned to come back here. He was supposed to come and get you tomorrow.”

Lux nods. “That’s right. Why the past tense, though? Tomorrow is tomorrow. He can still make it.”

Grimm looks taken aback, sharing looks with Pamela and Charles. “Lux, haven’t you read the _Prophet_? Your brother is missing.”

“I know what the _Prophet_ said,” Lux replies, ignoring everyone’s, aside from Kai, disturbed looks. “It didn’t say why you thought he was missing though.”

Grimm shares another look with her parents before looking back at her. “The wedding your brother attended was attacked,” he informs her. “We haven’t revealed this information yet because we don’t want to scare people until we know for sure what happened.”

Lux goes to say something witty but stops herself at the last second, remembering her brother’s advice to be careful. When Grimm understands that she won’t say anything else, he goes on.

“What about Gabriel Nott? You know him, right?”

Lux simply nods. In the corner of her eyes she sees Kai fidgets.

“When was the last time you saw him?”

Lux starts rubbing her index with her thumb, trying to control her breathing, her heart rate, and her thoughts. It won’t matter if Grimm is a legilimens but she can always try. “First day of the summer break, at the train station.”

“You haven’t seen him since?”

“No,” she lies.

Grimm stares at her, studying her face. Lux holds his gaze. “Why?” he asks. “Your parents said you two were close.”

“He had just finished school. He was busy getting ready for his training at the Ministry.”

“And what did you talk about?”

“Our summer plans, his training, and my last year of school.”

“Did he mention the wedding?”

“No.”

Grimm nods and the quill takes notes. “What about you?” he turns to Kai who blanches when he realizes he is being addressed, probably having not expected to be interviewed as well. “You seemed curious about his case. Why? You know him?”

Kai nods then clears his throat. “Ye-Yeah,” he manages to get out. When Grimm makes a “go on” gesture, Kai adds, “We are in the same House.”

“And when was the last time you saw him?”

Kai stares at Grimm before replying, “I don’t know, it was at school, right before the exams, probably. After his N.E.W.T.s.”

“What did you talk about?” Grimm asks with a sigh, probably tired of repeating the same question.

“Just… the exams. I asked him how he did. He told me, and that was it,” he concludes with a nod. Lux stares at him, seeing right through his lie. If she can see it, she figures that Grimm can too, however he doesn’t say anything.

“What about the two suspects? Anya and Selene Caulfield? Do either of you know them?”

Kai shakes his head no at the same time Lux says, “Yes.”

Right away, she can see that it was a mistake; Grimm is raising an eyebrow at her, Miranda is holding out a breath, and her parents are tensing up on either side of her. Quickly, she backpedals. “I mean, Anya was at school with us, in the same House as two of my friends so…”

“And are you aware of any links the Caulfield sisters could have had with either your brother or Gabriel Nott?”

“No,” Lux lies again.

The quill takes notes and Grimm nods. “Okay. Well, I have everything that I need, for now. I may contact you for follow-up questions.” He downs his drink and stands up. “Please let me know if you remember, see, or hear anything.” He turns to the Alperts and bows a little. “William, Miranda, thank you for your hospitality. Charles, I’ll see you at work. Pamela.” He bows again and leaves.

When she hears the entrance door close, Lux stands up abruptly to face her parents. “The wedding was attacked?”

Pamela leans back in her seat and nods. She looks devastated, Lux notices, but she doesn’t feel an ounce of sympathy toward her. “That’s what the Aurors told us. They came to see us this morning to let us know that the wedding your brother attended had been attacked and that witnesses had seen Nyx and Gabriel being taken away.”

“By Anya and Selene?” Lux repeats, knowing there was no need to pretend she didn’t know them. Her parents might not know how close the Caulfields are to her and Nyx but they still know they are friends, no matter how much they disapprove. “Come on...”

“We told you,” Charles jumps in. “We told you they were a bad influence.”

Lux rolls her eyes, doesn’t even bother replying.

“They found their flat empty,” Pamela points out, trying to reason her daughter.

“What about Nyx’s flat?” Lux asks.

“It was left just as it was,” Pamela replies.

Lux frowns and lets herself fall back into her couch. Nothing makes sense. Why would the Ministry try so hard to frame Anya and Selene for their stupid decree and use Nyx and Gabriel of all people in the process?

“Lux,” Miranda chimes in when no one speaks up. “I talked to your parents and offered them to let you stay here during the duration of the investigation. I imagine it’s going to be hard on all of you, not knowing what happened to Nyx and giving you all some space to process it might help? Besides, having a friend like Kai by your side would be nice, I’m sure.”

Lux stares wide-eyed at Miranda but nods. “Yeah, sure.”

“I have brought you everything you need for school and a change of clothes for the rest of the summer,” Pamela tells her, pointing at the trunk in the doorway as she and her husband stand up.

“Thanks,” Lux mumbles, not knowing what else to say. She hasn’t seen her parents in a while and now that Grimm is gone, she doesn’t really know how to act. Both of her parents go to give her an awkward hug, then they say goodbye to the Alperts and leave. When they’re gone, the Alperts and Lux are left alone in the living room.

“Should we eat dinner?” William asks, trying to sound cheerful but unable to undo the still tense atmosphere.

“I’m not too hungry,” Kai replies. “I’m just going to head upstairs. I’ll have Grimoire bring me something later.”

He turns around before anyone can say anything. William turns to Lux, looking hopeful but she mumbles a “Yeah, same,” and follows him upstairs.


	7. September 1, 1997 - 243 days before the Battle. (part 1)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting a few days late because I'm with family and the service isn't good. This is a Lux and Kai chapter and they're finally going back to Hogwarts! (Also I'm introducing a few new characters in this chapter)

The last month of the summer break goes by quickly.

The day after the interrogation, Lux foolishly waits for Nyx to show up. To Lux’s surprise, Kai stays with her and they keep on playing card games and all the other muggles games Lux can think of, in order to keep themselves busy. She feels a pang in her heart when she realizes Nyx won’t come but she goes on, getting ready for Hogwarts and the fight she is now sure is coming. She eventually sends a message to the DA members, via the coin, but the only reply comes from Neville who suggests they wait until they are all back together to properly talk.

In the days that follow, the first news about the new muggle-born decree starts coming in. The Registration Commission releases a new statement about how well the whole process is going and urges “those who have nothing to hide” to present themselves at the Ministry as soon as they can. Lux wonders where Julian and Dean are, what they intend to do. She wishes she could reach out to them but everybody knows now that the mail isn’t safe. No one writes to her and she doesn’t write to any one either, unable to say what she wants to say and finding it pointless to write anything else. Lux notices that Kai isn’t writing to anyone either but doesn’t dare to question him about it, not wanting to ruin the weird friendship they’ve built.

They spend all their days together and it gets easier and easier with time. They often tease each other but it usually ends in laughter rather than in a shouting match. Lux often thinks about how Nova and the others would react if they saw her share private jokes with Kai Alpert and it makes her smile. She has, after all, always loved going against people’s expectations.

In the morning of the first of September, however, neither of them is in a joking mood. Lux gets up early, around seven, and goes directly to the bathroom to get ready. She has fun with her outfit - denim overalls, a striped red and white crop top, and sneakers - knowing that soon, she’ll be wearing her school uniform every day. She ties her blonde hair into two braids and heads downstairs, carrying her huge trunk as well as she can, Kai snickering behind her.

“You know you could have asked Grimoire, right?” Kai tells her, coming to help her. “He already got mine down”

“Ugh, I keep forgetting to ask him stuff. I can’t wait to be seventeen,” she says with a sigh, letting the heavy trunk fall on the floor once they reach the bottom of the stairs.

She pushes her bangs away from her face and takes a good look at Kai. He looks very dapper, dressed to the nines in a light blue dress shirt, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, black trousers, and loafers. His light brown curls are cut short, a hairstyle Lux is more used to but makes him look more severe. Now that she thinks about it, Kai’s style probably played a huge part in her change of heart toward him. The whole summer, Kai’s hair was untamed, longer, and his choice of clothes more casual. He seemed carefree and it made him look younger, more approachable.

“I think you took the phrase ‘dress to impress’ a tad too literally,” Lux jokes, nudging his side with her elbow.

“What can I say, I have a reputation to maintain,” he replies with a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes.

“You okay?” Lux asks him with a frown.

“I’m fine,” he dismisses her as they both head to the kitchen.

Lux doesn’t push and sits down at the table, grinning when Grimoire brings her a plate full of food.

“You know, I think I’m actually going to miss this place.”

“You can always come back for Christmas,” Kai says shyly, pushing around his own food before taking a bite tentatively.

Lux pouts in reflection. “I guess so. My parents have never been big on Christmas, anyway. Nyx and I used to spend it with the Caulfields while our parents attended some fancy party at the Notts estate, and more times than not Gabriel would join us.” She ends her sentence with a small, sad smile, wondering where they must be now.

Kai looks at her sadly. “Anything in the _Prophet_?”

It had become part of their morning routine to read the _Daily Prophet_ in search of news regarding the investigation. However, nothing had been said since the first article. Every day, the page dedicated to the wanted wizards showed Selene’s and Anya’s face but aside from that, there was no mention of Gabriel and Nyx.

“Haven’t read it yet,” Lux informs him between two mouthfuls.

“Grimoire!” Kai calls out. “Can you bring us the journal?”

They don’t have to wait too long, the elf there in a flash. He drops the _Prophet_ in front of Kai then goes back to what he was doing in the laundry room.

“Oh wow,” Kai lets out as he stares at the front page in awe.

“What?” Lux asks him, standing up to read it behind his shoulder.

**SEVERUS SNAPE CONFIRMED**   
**AS HOGWARTS HEADMASTER**

> “Severus Snape, long-standing Potions master at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, was today appointed Headmaster in the most important of several staffing changes at the ancient school. Following the resignation of the previous Muggle Studies teacher, Alecto Carrow will take over the post while her brother, Amycus, fills the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. ‘I welcome the opportunity to uphold our finest Wizarding traditions and values—"

“What the fuck?” She takes the journal from Kai’s hand ignoring his protest and re-reads the article. “That can’t be real.”

“Looks pretty legit to me,” Kai replies, looking up at her while he keeps eating his breakfast.

Lux notices that he doesn’t seem too bothered by the news. She lowers the journal and frowns at him. “You don’t seem to care.”

Kai shrugs. “Snape loves me.”

“He murdered Dumbledore,” Lux enunciates slowly, looking at him in shock.

“That’s what Potter said,” Kai replies. “He can’t be too guilty if the Ministry is hiring him.”

“Kai,” Lux says, voice full of disbelief. “I was there remember? I saw Harry running after him.”

“You saw Harry run after him. You didn’t see him kill Dumbledore. Why would the Ministry hire him, then?”

“He must have been found not guilty,” Lux says to herself, realisation dawning on her. “The Ministry found him not guilty.”

“Uh, yeah. That’s what I just said,” Kai replies, eyebrows drawn together.

“No! You don’t get it! _The Ministry_ found him not guilty!” When Kai doesn’t seem to understand where she’s getting at, she goes on. “Think about it... don’t you find that the Ministry has acted a bit weird since Dumbledore’s death? First, there’s this whole mess with Gabe, Nyx, Selene, and Anya. Then, there’s Scrimgeour resigning. There’s also the new decree against muggle-borns that literally comes out of nowhere and now this! The Ministry is going after Order members and muggle-borns and just acquitted Dumbledore’s murderer! Who else could want this?”

“Wait,” Kai says, raising his hand to stop her. “The Order of the Phoenix is a real thing?”

Lux stares at him. “Really? That’s what you get out of this? Yes, the Order is a real thing and if I’m right about this, I think Anya and Gabe joined it last summer. But that’s not what’s important. What’s important is that the Ministry has fallen.”

Kai looks at her, more amused than anything. “Now I get why you and Gabriel are best friends. You’re both so quick to jump to conclusions.”

Lux goes to say something but stops herself. There is no point arguing with Kai. They might have gotten closer this summer but at the end of the day they aren’t friends and he is a Slytherin. Instead, she latches on what he just said.

“You seem to know Gabe well.”

Kai studies her face. “I do,” he says slowly.

“How come he never talked to me about you?”

Kai shrugs, raising his glass to his lips. “Maybe he just doesn’t tell you everything,” he says before drinking, smiling around the rim.

Lux glares at him and goes back to her breakfast. Her leg bounces frantically as she eats, betraying her nervosity. Snape being the new Headmaster is a game changer. Who knows what Hogwarts is going to be like now that the Ministry has shifted sides. After Dumbledore’s death, it was already pretty clear that the school wouldn’t be the same. But everyone assumed that McGonagall would take over. With Snape in charge, however, a traitor and a Death Eater, Lux suddenly feels the need to pull a Harry and flee.

“Come on, guys, hurry up. You don’t want to be late,” William calls out as he crosses the kitchen.

Kai and Lux quickly finish eating then meet William outside. He stands near an expensive black car, looking at a pocket watch. “Ready?” he asks when he sees them coming out.

“Yeah, let’s go, dad,” Kai replies before going for the passenger seat in the front. Lux follows him and sits in the back.

An hour later, they pull up in front of King’s Cross. The station is packed, muggles running around, unaware of the scared wizards moving in groups, throwing paranoid glances everywhere.

They go through the passage between platform 9 and 10, William staying with them the whole time, and find themselves on platform 9¾. The platform is buzzing. Friends are embracing each other after not seeing each other for a long time and parents share anxious words about the recent news. Lux spots several kids who seem to be first years and feels a pang of sadness for them. Starting at Hogwarts was such an existing thing when she was their age, she can’t imagine how she would feel in their place.

“Lux, Kai, come over here.” William pulls them near a pillar, out of the way. “You be careful, alright?”

“Yeah, don’t worry, dad,” Kai reassures him, hugging him close.

Lux looks away, trying to give them some privacy.

“Same thing goes for you, Lux, okay?”

Lux looks back at him, surprised to be addressed. “Yeah, of c-” She stops herself when William hugs her.

“I’m sure your brother is alright,” he whispers in her ear and she holds him a bit tighter.

“Thank you, William,” Lux tells him when they pull back. “Please tell Miranda how thankful I am for your kindness and generosity this summer.”

“Of course. And don’t forget; you’re welcome home whenever you want.”

“Thank you,” she replies with a nod.

Next to them, Kai fidgets, looking around, running a hand through his hair. “Can we go, now?”

“Yes, yes, of course,” William says quickly, hugging his son again. He whispers something in his ear and Lux swears that Kai has tears in his eyes when he pulls back.

“Have a good trimester!” William waves at them, then turns back and leaves the platform.

Left alone, Kai and Lux look awkwardly at each other, not knowing what to do now that they are surrounded by other people.

“Well,” Lux eventually says, understanding that Kai would not make the first move, “guess I’ll see you around?”

“Yeah,” Kai mumbles and then he’s gone, pushing his cart away. 

*******

Lux is surveying the train in search of her friends when she bumps into someone. Not really paying attention, she apologizes and tries to leave but the guy holds her back.

“Lux?”

Lux looks up and almost breaks down when she notices that the guy is actually Ezra. She falls into his arms, whispering his name, feeling all the emotions she has held back for this past month explode all at once. Ezra holds her close, probably feeling very emotional himself.

“Hey, I’m here. Shhh, come on, let’s find a compartment.” He wraps an arm around her shoulder and leads her to one of the many empty compartments.

They sit down near the window, Lux practically on Ezra’s lap, and hold hands.

“How are you?” Ezra asks her, playing with her fingers.

“I don’t know,” she answers truthfully. “I honestly have no idea.”

“Are the rumours true? You spent your summer at Alpert’s?”

Lux smiles at that, having not expected the news to travel that fast. “Yeah,” she says, wiping her nose with her arm. “Nyx thought it would be best for me.”

“Lux, about Nyx…” Ezra starts but Lux stops him.

“Not right now,” she tells him. She knows he must have so many questions but the train isn’t safe enough for her to tell him everything. “Did you hear from Julian?” she asks him instead, already guessing the answer.

Ezra shakes his head. “Nova is terrified. She wrote to me when the new decree got out and then a couple of weeks ago. She tried to contact him but her owl came back with her letter.”

“She didn’t find him?”

Ezra shakes his head again. “Lux, I think Julian ran away.”

Lux nods, looking out the window. It wouldn’t surprise her. In his place, she probably would have too. “I guess no news is good news.”

Ezra sighs. “Guess so.” He pauses, then says, “My father moved back home.”

Lux looks back at him then frowns. “Home? I don’t- What do you mean?” she asks then it dawns on her. “Oh.”

The Cohens are Americans. Ezra’s mother, Marissa Kinkade, was an American witch. She spent most of her life there, studying at Ilvermorny, and met a young “no-maj” law student, Neil Cohen, who had always dreamt of moving to England. Once they knew they wanted to build a life together, Marissa revealed the truth to him. They, then, decided to elope to England, and Marissa became pregnant. She died a year later under the hand of Evan Rosier who was arrested shortly after. After her death, her little sister, Eliza, reached out to Neil to help him raise Ezra who was already showing signs of magic. While Neil and Ezra stayed in England, they often went back to San Francisco, Neil’s hometown and where Eliza now lived. Lux figures that with everything going on, Ezra thought better for his muggle father to move in with an actual witch to protect him.

“Yeah.” Ezra lets out a loud sigh then smiles a little. “So. How was it at Alpert’s?”

Lux opens her mouth to answer but someone slides the door of the compartment open and cuts her off.

Ezra and Lux look up and Lux feels a knot tying up in her stomach. Adelia, Ash, Sage, and Nova all stand in the opening, staring at them but not entering.

“Hi, guys,” Ezra says, waving at them.

There is a timid chorus of Heys and Hellos and the four friends enter the compartment. They sit down on the remaining seats, Sage next to Lux and Ezra, Adelia, Nova, and Ash in front of them.

There is an awkward silence then but Lux isn’t surprised. She, herself, doesn’t really know what to say. Nova has lost Julian and Sage, Anya. She isn’t about to rub salt in the wound, especially not when she knows what they’re going through. As for Adelia and Ash, Lux doesn’t think asking how their summer went is a very good or sensitive idea.

Next to her, Ezra seems to be going through the same thought process and Sage is very clearly not looking at her. In front of her, Nova and Adelia are staring at her, and Ash is pretending to look at the people walking outside the compartment.

It isn’t until the train starts moving that Ash finally breaks the silence. “I’m sorry about Nyx, Lux.” Everyone looks at him and he seems to want to disappear in front of their eyes. “I mean…”

“Thanks, Ash,” Lux interrupts him with a nod.  
“So when did you count on telling us?” Adelia says suddenly, straightening up, trying to sound nonchalant but failing to hide her anger.

Lux frowns, Ezra raises his eyebrows, and the rest looks at them expectantly.

“About what?” Ezra asks tentatively while Lux stares at Adelia.

“About Dumbledore’s Army,” Adelia says slowly, eyes still fixed on Lux.

Lux has to give it to her, she didn’t expect that one. “How did you find out?” she asks, not bothering to play dumb.

“Nova told us.” This time, it’s Sage who chimes in. Lux stares at Adelia for a bit longer then turns toward Sage. “Adelia was spending the break with Ash and I,” Sage starts to explain. “When Nova wrote to us about Julian, we went to see her. Eventually, she started telling us about last year and the army.”

“Okay…” Ezra says slowly, looking between Lux, Nova, and Adelia. “And? What did she tell you exactly?”

Nova avoids their eyes, Adelia shrugs. “Everything. She told us how it started during our fifth year, how you decided not to follow Harry to the Ministry, how you went to fight on top of the Astronomy Tower and she refused to follow you…” She pauses then adds, a venomous smirk twisting her lips, “How you and Gabriel didn’t trust us enough to tell us about it.”

Inside, Lux thinks “Shit.” She doesn’t say it out loud, though. Instead, she nods. “I see.”

“I guess Nova didn’t tell you that Julian didn’t either, uh?” Ezra jumps in, arms crossed over his chest.

“I told them _because_ of Julian!” Nova protests. “But you couldn’t know, you weren’t there. _You_ ,” she points at Ezra, “too busy getting a tan in California and _you_ ,” she points at Lux, “too busy making friends with Alpert.”

“Damn, the news really travels fast around here,” Lux mumbles, with a small smile.

“This isn’t funny,” Adelia tells her, throwing her a haughty look.

“Oh no,” Lux protests, “this is hilarious. You really think that while Nova cried over Julian, Ezra and I were having the time of our lives? Why do you think Ezra was in the United States, uh? And me? You think I had an amazing summer? My brother is missing! So is my best friend, and two girls I consider family. And on top of that, one of my closest friend is probably getting hunted by snatchers as we speak. So yeah, I find it very funny that you could be mad at me because I spent my summer with Kai.”

“Oh, so it’s Kai, now, uh?” Adelia asks, incredulous. Nova is glaring at them and the Choi twins stay silent.

Lux stares at Adelia then lets out a laugh. “Seriously? That’s your biggest problem, then? Yes, I spent my summer at Kai Alpert’s house. But that’s only because Nyx is, once again, missing!”

“Oh please,” Sage finally chimes in, rolling her eyes. “You of all people must know that’s rubbish.”

“Of course, I know he wasn’t kidnapped,” Lux snaps, looking at Sage next to her. “I’m not that daft. But did you hear from Anya recently? No? Yeah, didn’t think so.”

“This is all Harry’s fault,” Nova mumbles.

Ezra gives her a weird look. “I’m sorry, what?”

“This is all Harry’s fault,” Nova repeats, louder. “Gabriel, Anya, and Julian, they’re all missing because of him and soon it’s going to be your turn!”

Lux tries to hold back her smile this time. “Our turn? What, we’re going to go missing, too?”

“Harry made you believe that it was our place to fight,” Nova explains.

“Of course it is!” Ezra looks almost desperate.

“It’s really not!” Nova protests. “We’re kids! So far you’ve been lucky. The Order was there for you but what are you going to do once they’re all fugitives? Some of them already are...”

“Wait what?” Lux asks, sitting up suddenly.

“You didn’t see?” Ezra asks, turning toward her.

“See what?”

Ash is the one to tell her, seeing this as an opportunity to calm everyone down. “They’re accusing Harry of Dumbledore’s murder and are actively searching for any accomplices.”

“What?!” Lux lets out.

“It was in this morning’s Prophet. Didn’t you read it?” Ezra asks her softly, looking nervous.

Lux shakes her dead. “I only saw Snape’s nomination. I didn’t… Who are they searching exactly?”

“Lupin and Hermione,” Ash tells her.

“The werewolf and the muggle-born? How original,” Lux mumbles. Ezra, the only one to have heard her, nods.

Adelia seems to think that Lux’s horrified face means they got her. “See? It’s hopeless. We might as well try to stay alive.”

“So that’s your plan then?” Lux asks, tone cold, biting. That’s why she never trusted them. “You’re just going to wait for the adults to do all the work? Or are you just going to surrender and let You-Know-Who win once and for all?”

“How dare you?” Lux hears Adelia asks her but she ignores her.

“We might be children but at least we’re fighting, we’re trying. Harry is our age and look at everything he has already accomplished? You think he’s running right now? He’s fighting, that’s what he’s doing, because he can’t, he refuses to accept a world where You-Know-Who wins.”

“You act all innocent, but you, not reacting, is the same as you, joining them,” Ezra jumps in, looking even more furious than Lux. “Perhaps the war hasn’t touched you enough yet to realize that we _have_ to fight. How can you tell _us_ that we should wait for other people to fight _our_ fight? Because it is! It is our fight. My mom got killed by Evan Rosier when I was barely four months old. Gabe’s parents are literal Death Eaters and he had to fight his own uncle last year. He’s now on the run with Nyx, Selene, and Anya. Remember her, Sage? Anya?” Sage has the decency to look down at the mention of her sort-of-girlfriend. “And yes, Julian ran away. He ran away because there are snatchers hunting him. So if I were you, I would root for Julian rather than be pissed at us. _That’s_ surviving. Not what you’re doing, judging us and waiting for the war to pass. It won’t pass if we don’t do anything to stop it.” He stands up, and Lux follows him. “Now, excuse us, we’re gonna sit with people who actually get that. See you on the other side.”

*******

On the other side of the train, Kai’s journey is less eventful. He sits at the front of the train, where the Slytherins usually regroup, among the other sixth year boys. He stays by himself for most of the journey, content in the fact that everyone leaves him be when the door slides open.

“Kai, there you are!”

He winces when he hears who that is but still forces a smile on his lips when he looks up. “Pansy, hey.”

“I was looking for you! Come on, come sit with us!”

The other sixth years look at him and Kai feels like he has no other choice. He packs his book back in his bag and follows Pansy out and in another compartment where Millicent Bulstrode, Theodore Nott, and Blaine Zabini are sitting together. Kai notes that there are other seventh years missing but doesn’t comment on it

“Hey,” he says lowly sitting down between Pansy and Blaise, facing Theo and Millicent.

“So?” Pansy asks, leaning toward him. “How was your summer?”

“Uneventful,” Kai simply replies, trying to sit a bit further away from her without ending up on Blaise’s lap, who seems amused by Pansy’s flirting.

“I heard you were hanging out with Astor,” Theo points out with a smirk, his smile widening at the sight of Pansy’s grimace.

Next to him, Millicent snickers. “She probably was more phased by your cousin’s disappearance than you were, Theo.”

As the others chuckle and Theo shrugs, Kai says, “My family is friends with hers and her parents were busy with the investigation so she stayed with us for a while. I didn’t see her much.”

“Heard about Snape?” Blaise asks, changing the subject.

Kai nods. “Should be interesting, innit?”

“Should be,” Theo replies with a smile.

“About that,” Millicent chimes in, almost at the edge of her seat, “noticed all the people missing this morning? No mudbloods in sight.”

“There’s like five Gryffindors left,” Pansy adds, giggling. “We finally got rid of Granger.”

“Nova Carlisle is still here though,” Millicent tells her. “I hoped she would run with her little boyfriend.”

“Anyone seen Sage today?” Blaise asks, trying to sound casual, despite Kai and Theo knowing full well he has a huge crush on her.

“Saw her with her brother and his girlfriend,” Millicent tells him.

The whole train ride goes like this. They gossip about the people of their year, talking with glee about the ones who are missing and insulting those who came. Kai doesn’t really pay attention to them unless they are directly addressing him. He focuses instead on trying to avoid Pansy’s attempts to flirt with him. Not for the first time, Kai finds himself thinking about how long this year is going to be.


	8. September 1, 1997 - 243 days before the Battle. (part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting one day late because I'm still with family but here we go with Chapter 8. We're still with Lux and Kai (mainly Lux) during their first night back at Hogwarts!  
> Next chapter is a Julian chapter.

Ezra and Lux finish their journey to Hogwarts with Neville, Luna, and Ginny. They don’t talk about what they actually want to talk about, instead, fill the silence with conversations none of them care about. Lux asks Neville about his latest botanical obsession but doesn’t really listen to the answer; Neville doesn’t seem to care. Ginny comments on Ezra’s drawing and Ezra replies that he bought them at Madam Malkin. No one reacts.

They get down at Hogsmeade station, where Hagrid is there to greet the first years. The group makes its way toward the carriage and stay completely silent until they reach the castle. Around them, it is all very quiet. They figure that most students are in a similar state of mind as theirs. When they finally enter the castle and reach the doors of the Great Hall, they are met with Seamus, Parvati, and Lavender who all look very determined.

“We spent the whole ride talking,” Seamus whispers to them, pretending to fix the collar of Ezra’s shirt. “Let’s meet up tonight, alright? The usual?”

Neville nods and claps him on the shoulder. “Yeah. Check your coins.”

Seamus nods, jaw set. He looks very pale, Lux notices, and she figures it must be because of Dean.

The doors of the Great Hall open for them after a few minutes and they enter the room. The sky looks grimmer than ever. As they walk, the students split up between their respective houses, Neville, Lux, Ginny, Seamus, Parvati and Lavender sticking together. They head for the furthest table on the right and seat at the benches closer to the entrance.

While the rest of the students take place, Lux risks a glance at the staff table and freezes when she spots the two new faces.

“Neville,” she says, her voice barely louder than a whisper.

“What?” he replies, tone matching.

“Look at the table. The two new teachers.”

Neville and Ginny, who sits on the other side of Lux and thus heard her, do as told and look up at the staff.

“That’s the Carrows, I assume,” Neville replies with a frown.

Ginny, however, looks more concerned. “I’ve seen them before,” she whispers.

Lux nods, eyes fixed on the two faces, her face somber. “Yeah, we’ve seen them before.” She pauses, then looks back at Ginny. “On top of the tower.”

Neville does a double take and Ginny lets her hand falls heavily on top of the table, realization dawning on her face. The sound attracts the attention of Seamus, Parvati, and Lavender, sitting in front of them.

“What’s wrong?” Parvati asks, leaning forward.

“Later,” Neville whispers to them before looking back at the staff table, a new kind of anger settling behind his eyes.

On the table next to them, Adelia and Ash take place among the Ravenclaws, Adelia making sure Lux is always in her field-of-view.

“Adelia,” Ash says with a sigh, “can’t you just give her a break?”

“No,” Adelia replies firmly. “She’s up to something. They all are. And I can’t shake the feeling that things will go wrong. She can be mad at me all she wants, I still worry about her,” she admits, her eyes softening.

“Really?” Ash asks her, as everyone settles around them, the last few students jogging to catch up with their house. “Or are you just pissed that she didn’t trust you.”

“It’s not about that!” Adelia protests, glaring at her boyfriend. “I mean, of course I was hurt when Nova told us about it but I just… I’m scared, alright? I’m scared for Nyx, Gabe, Anya, and Selene, who are out there and we have no idea what’s going on. I’m terrified thinking about Julian, on the run, probably by himself, hunted by wizards far more experienced than he is. And yeah, I’m worried about Lux and Ezra trying to be heroes and risking their lives when they’re probably the only people we know who are safe.”

Ash nods. “I get that,” he says, turning back to Adelia, “but I don’t think yelling at them about it is a good idea. You know how stubborn she is. The more you’ll try to discourage her, the more she’ll want to do it.”

“Ugh, I know,” Adelia sighs with a roll of eyes. “I was more hoping that Ezra would hear us. If anyone can reason her in Gabe’s and Anya’s absence, it’s him.”

“Maybe,” Ash shrugs, before looking behind himself, at the Gryffindor table where Ginny, Lux, and Neville are whispering to each other.

“It’s not very polite to stare.”

Ash startles at Luna’s voice and turns back around, Adelia looking as shaken as he feels.

“Merlin, Luna, you scared us,” Adelia says, a hand over her heart.

Luna shrugs. “You should have paid more attention instead of staring at Lux like that.”

Adelia gives her a nasty look and turns around slightly to ignore her.

The doors of the Great Hall open again, then, to let in the small crowd of first years. They are less numerous than the years before, and look more scared than usual, Lux notices. Once again, she finds herself wanting to protect them at all costs. McGonagall is leading the crowd toward the stool where the Sorting Hat sits, a scroll of parchment in her hand. Everyone’s eyes are on them as she explains to the new students the purpose of the four Houses and the sorting process. When she calls each name, it is as if the whole room is holding its breath. A few of them are sorted in Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, but the majority of them end up in Slytherin, the table bursting in applause every time the Hat calls out their House name. Only three students end up in Gryffindor. Lux sees Romilda Vane welcoming them with a kind smile and tender words, and the gesture warms her heart.

After the last student is sent to Hufflepuff, McGonagall magics the stool and the Hat away and goes to sit behind the staff table, just as food appears on all five tables.

Ezra fills his plate with enough food to last him the month and start eating it right away, under Hannah’s and Ernie’s amused eyes.

“You’re scared Snape is going to ration the food or something?” Ernie asks him with a smirk.

“We never know,” Ezra replies with a matching smile. He misses Julian terribly but he has to admit that being back here, with his housemates, helps to ease the pain a little.

“You’re still not talking to Nova?” Hannah points out, the three of them turning to look at Nova who sits with Susan a few seats away from them.

She looks miserable and it pains Ezra to see her like this. Nova was his first friend at Hogwarts after all, and he has always been very grateful for her help at the time. His father raised him the muggle way, unable to fully comprehend his powers and letting his sister-in-law do all the teaching when she could be here, which wasn’t as often as necessary. Hogwarts was Ezra’s first real experience in the magical world and Nova helped him through everything, from the shelves of Flourish and Blotts to the Sorting Hat and the Hufflepuff table.

“No,” Ezra says with a deep sigh. “It’s… complicated. Did you talk to Seamus on the train?” When they nod, he adds, “I’ll tell you later, then.”

At the Slytherin table, Kai is stuck next to Pansy who keeps touching his arm or worse, his leg, when she talks to him.

He is halfway through his second helping when he realizes that the girl sitting next to him is none other than Sage Choi. Taking a deep breath, he says, “I heard about your girlfriend.”

Sage takes some time before she acknowledges him, having probably not understood he was addressing her. “I’m sorry, what?”

Kai starts to second-guess himself, feeling like bringing it up might have been a bad idea. “I-I heard about your girlfriend. Anya. I’m sorry.”

Sage frowns. “Anya isn’t my girlfriend,” she says harshly, looking confused as to why Kai is talking to her. “Besides, it’s your pal Theo you should be sorry for. Gabriel is his cousin, after all.”

Kai clenches his jaw. “Yeah, I don’t think he cares that much.”

Sage raises two curious eyebrows. “No, maybe not,” she replies, looking suspicious. She finds it weird for Kai to react like that. Him, Blaise, and Theo have always formed a dynamic trio. She furrows her brows then gapes at him. “Wait. You spent your summer with Lux, right?”

Kai nods.

Suddenly, Sage looks at him as if he was the single most interesting thing she had ever encountered. “I assume you were there when she learned then.”

“I was, yeah. It was hard… for her.”

Sage nods, head resting on her fist studying Kai closely. The sadness that crosses Kai’s face seems to delight her. “Pansy likes you,” she says matter of factly, her eyes fixed on him as if waiting impatiently for his answer.

“She does,” Kai replies with a small grimace.

“But you don’t like her.” It’s not a question.

“No. She’s not really my type,” Kai replies, thinking, _understatement of the century_.

Sage’s smile only widens at that. “No. Of course not.”

Snape stands up then, and everyone turns their attention toward him. As he speaks, it is as if the whole school is hanging on his every word.

“Good evening,” Snape calls out. Lux expected to see a small, victorious smile on his lips but instead, she only sees concentration and focus on his face. “And welcome for another year at Hogwarts. Tonight, more than ever, I want to remind you that you will _always_ be safe here, no matter how dark the times may be. I know we have had a difficult past couple of years but I promise you that I’ll do my best to have our castle remain the shelter you have always known. And I know I can count on every single one of you to help along the way. We have to stand united. Please, never forget that we are _always_ stronger together.” Snape marks a pause to let people clap.

The Slytherins have never looked more joyful. Their table is, without doubt, the one that makes the most noise. Lux stares at them in silence, the knot in her stomach getting worse with each passing second. She’s about to look away when her eyes catch Kai’s. He is clapping along but unlike his classmates, he isn’t looking at Snape but right at her. Lux is about to address him a small smile but it gets lost as the applause resumes and Kai turns back toward the staff table.

“Now, let me introduce your two new professors; Alecto Carrow, who will take care of the Muggle Studies classes and Amycus Carrow, who will take care of the Dark Arts classes. Please note that both classes are now mandatory for everyone.”

The two new professors stand up and there is another round of applause. Lux stares ahead, hands balled into fists under the table.

“Did he just say ‘Dark Arts classes’?” Seamus asks, leaning forward.

Neville nods slowly. “He did.”

“What does that mean?” Lavender asks, looking scared.

“That You-Know-Who won,” Ginny replies, eyebrows drawn together in determination.

*******

“Okay, this is depressing,” Lavender says with a grimace, her eyes fixed on Hermione’s empty bed.

These are the first words that either of them dares speaking since they left the Great Hall. The castle was uncharacteristically quiet as the four Houses made their way toward their respective common room. In absence of Ron and Hermione, Neville self-appointed himself prefect, figuring that they would ask McGonagall for a more permanent solution later. He put himself at the front of the crowd, none of the other, younger prefects or students really questioning it, all eager to get to their beds.

Once in the Gryffindor common room, no one really lingered near the fireplace. It was indeed quite depressing to stand in the middle of the common room like this, as it made the absence of their housemates stand out even more. Lux could practically see where Harry, Hermione, Ron, Julian, Dean, Colin, and Denis should have been standing. Instead, they all headed straight for their dorms; Ginny and Romilda leading the one girl sent to Gryffindor during the sorting ceremony, and Neville and Seamus taking care of the two boys.

Being in the dorm room doesn’t help much however, Hermione’s empty bed a stark reminder of everything going wrong at the moment.

“This is awful,” Lux says, her eyes also on the bed. “I think I would have prefered it if they had taken it away. I mean they knew she wouldn’t be here, right?”

Parvati, also looking at the bed, says, “They probably wanted us to see it. You know, as a punishment.”

“Or as a warning,” Lavender offers somberly.

Lux and Parvati both look away from the bed and at Lavender, who shrugs. “Snape knows who is in the DA.”

“Fair enough,” Lux agrees with a sigh. “Maybe we should invite the first year to sleep with us? She’s going to be all alone in that dorm room.”

“Or we could invite Ginny and have the first year take her bed in the sixth year’s dorm? I don’t think it’d be a good idea to have her here with us when we might be out at DA meetings every night,” Parvati replies, already changing into sweats and a jumper.

“Fair enough,” Lavender repeats, pointing at Lux. “By the way, any news on the time?”

Lux takes out her coin. “Neville says midnight in the Room of Requirement.”

“Midnight it is then,” Parvati replies, tying her sneakers and throwing herself on her bed, arms crossed behind her head.

Lux and Lavender both get ready as well, in clothes comfortable enough to both sleep in and sneak out of the common room. The girls keep themselves busy by talking about what Harry, Ron, and Hermione might be up to. Parvati and Lavender also tell Lux that Theodore Nott and Pansy Parkinson were named Head boy and Head girl.

“Padma said that the meeting was pretty short. Prefects are no longer in charge of the patrols. The Carrows are now in charge of all the discipline, and the Head boy and Head girl - Nott and Parkinson, that is - will assist them but that’s it,” Parvati explains as the clock strikes eleven.

“Okay… Then what do the prefects do now?”

“Nothing, basically. Just report to the Head boy and Head girl whenever they ‘deem necessary’,” Lavender replies, making air quotes.

“So, snitch,” Lux translates.

“Yeah,” Parvati and Lavender reply at the same time.

At eleven thirty, the girls leave their dorm quietly, throwing a muting spell on the sixth other doors. Ginny comes out, then, dressed in a similar way as them. The four of them go downstairs where Neville and Seamus are waiting for them.

“You should have seen the dorm,” Seamus whispers when the girls appear in the common room. “We used to complain all the time about how tiny it was for six boys…”

“And here I thought Hermione’s empty bed was depressing,” Lavender says with a grimace. “I can’t imagine how it must be like for you up there.”

“Oh, we have room,” Neville says, with a forced smile.

“Lots and lots and lots of room,” Seamus adds, nodding along, looking almost haunted.

“Yeah,” Neville, Lux, Parvati, and Lavender all sigh at the same time. Ginny stares at them, eyes wide open.

“Well you guys are a blast, really, but we probably should head out now if we don’t want to get the others waiting,” she says, turning around abruptly, ponytail flying behind her, and heading toward the passageway.

Lux winces, realizing how hard it must be for her. None of them really took time to ask her about her brother, her boyfriend, and her best friend because they knew she wouldn’t be able to say anything but Lux now thinks that perhaps they should. She is the last one to see them, after all.

The group sets toward the Ballet Dancing Troll tapisserie, trying to be as quiet as possible. Thankfully, they don’t bump into anyone, or anything, on their way there, the castle as silent as a tomb. When they get there, they don’t have to wait too long, the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff groups not too far behind. Once everyone is there, Neville opens the Room and they all slide inside.

“Oh thank god, finally!” Ezra lets out a loud sigh, feeling truly safe for the first time in a very long time.

The room looks warm, welcoming. It almost looks like a common room, except that the colours are neutral. There are a few couches and poufs, forming a circle around a coffee table on which sit rolls of parchment, a quill, and a bottle of ink.

Ezra and Seamus are the first to throw themselves on the poufs and the others quickly follow suit. When everyone is settled, Neville takes one of the parchment roll and the quill and starts writing the names.

“Alright so we have me, Seamus, Lux, Lavender, Parvati, and Ginny,” he scribbles down, then moves on to the Ravenclaws, “Luna and Padma.” He pauses, looks at the Hufflepuffs, then writes down, “Ezra, Hannah, and Ernie.”

Hannah looks at the parchment with a fearful look. “Is it really necessary? I mean, I’m pretty sure everyone that is here won’t snitch.”

Neville looks confused, then looks down at the parchment then back at Hannah. “Oh no, I’m not going to spell it. I just thought it would be nice to have a list, you know, to maybe see it grow?”

Ginny looks around then back at Ezra and Lux. “Nova isn’t coming, uh?”

Lux and Ezra look between each other then back at Ginny. “No.”

“Want to fill us in?” Seamus asks, having only just re-joined the DA, and thus not knowing what had happened.

“About Nova?” Ezra asks.

Seamus shrugs. “About Nova and whatever happened last year.”

Everyone turns to Ezra, the storyteller of the group. “Sure, okay,” he says, rubbing his hands over his trousers. “You know how we felt after the Battle at the Ministry?” He asks and the others nod. Ezra looks at Ginny, Neville, and Luna, and goes on. “When you guys got back, some of us felt awful. We talked a lot about how, next time something like that would happen, we would be there, you know? Ernie, Hannah, Nova, Anya, and I talked a _lot_ about it last year. We could see that Harry was up to something, all of us could, and we could feel that something would happen soon. That night, when Ron and Hermione reached out to us, we were _ready_. We…” Ezra trails off, looking at nothing in particular, as if reliving his memories from last year. “It’s Hannah who woke us up. She had her coin in her hand and she went to wake up each of us. We all came upstairs, in the common room, Ernie, Hannah, Nova, Anya, and I,” he says again, looking sad. “Nova was still in her pajamas, though... “

“She refused to let us go,” Hannah jumps in when she sees Ezra getting upset. “She kept saying that it was a bad idea, going out there, that we didn’t know what was happening, and that we would get in trouble. Anya and her started fighting. Nova said that Lux was manipulating Ezra and Anya said Nova should be ashamed, that she had only pretended for Julian and that she was a coward.”

“Nova looked very upset,” Ernie goes on. “She went back to bed and we left for the Room of Requirement where Ginny, Ron, Lux, Julian, and Neville were waiting for us. Ron gave us Harry’s Felix Felicis and then we waited.”

“Harry told them that Dumbledore and him were leaving the school and that Malfoy and Snape might try something in their absence,” Neville picks up. “Malfoy helped Death Eaters come inside the school via the Room of Requirement. They blinded us with Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder when they came out; it was a nightmare, we couldn’t see anything. They were throwing spells at us but all of them seemed to miss, thanks to the Felix Felicis.”

“Ron had Harry’s map,” Ginny takes over. “We followed the Death Eaters and eventually bumped into Tonks. She warned the other Order members and professors that were patrolling the corridors and we all went to the Astronomy Tower where the Death Eaters had gone. They started attacking us so we responded and the battle broke out. It was pure chaos. That’s when Flitwick was sent to get Snape for help.”

“In the meantime, Hermione and I were standing guards in front of Snape’s office,” Luna goes on. “Gabriel joined us after a while and we waited. Flitwick came in at some point, looking very anxious, saying that a battle had begun, and then… We don’t really know what happened. We heard a noise, a body hitting the floor, and Snape came out, saying that Flitwick has fainted and that we should take care of him. Hermione and I stayed behind while Gabriel followed Snape upstairs.”

“It was very dark, there were people everywhere, we could barely see what was going on.” It’s Lux’s turn to speak, now. “At some point, some of the Death Eaters and Malfoy went upstairs but we couldn’t follow them. Julian and I tried to but we were stopped by an invisible barrier. Hermione thought that only people wearing a dark mark could cross it. So we stayed at the bottom of the stairs and we kept fighting. Gabriel and Snape arrived then. Snape crossed the barrier and Gabriel joined in the battle.”

“Julian and I got cornered,” Neville chimes back in. “Two masked Death Eaters were on us. I disarmed one of them and he threw himself at me instead, started punching me. Gabriel pushed Julian out of the way of the other and got injured by his curse in the process. I think that’s when he realized…”

“That it was his uncle,” Lux completes with a nod. “Luna and Hermione finally arrived and then the Death Eaters that had gone upstairs came back. Those of us who were still standing, fought them, while Snape and Harry ran away. We didn’t know what was going on at first.”

“Hannah and I followed them, to see what was happening,” Ernie goes on. “We followed them all the way down to the Great Hall, where some Hufflepuffs were standing, probably woken up by the battle. Harry ran past us, knocking some of us down. That’s when we understood that he was _fighting_ Snape.”

“He looked furious, kept yelling at him. They went outside and Ernie and I stayed with the students that kept coming in, asking questions.”

“Like us,” Seamus says with a joyless smile.

“Like you,” Hannah nods.

“Anya, Ezra, Julian, and I took Gabe and Neville to the hospital wing,” Lux goes on with the story. “We tried to learn more about what was going on exactly but none of the Order members nor Gabriel wanted to reply and Madam Pomfrey made us go back to sleep.”

“So you didn’t know about Dumbledore?” Padma asks.

Ezra shakes his head. “Ernie told us when he got back to the common room. The next day, Ron said that Harry had said that Snape had killed Dumbledore. Then Gabriel told us about his uncle and suddenly, everything looked even worse than what we could have ever imagined.”

“What’s up with Gabriel now?” Lavender asks, the most curious of them, as always.

Lux tells them about her encounter with Gabriel back at Merlin’s Vale. She then tells them about Nyx, Selene, Anya, and Gabriel going to the wedding, them going missing, and Harraps Grimm’s investigation. She tells them about her theory, that the wedding was attacked by the Ministry and the Death Eaters and that they’re using this as an excuse to have people look for them. She tries to leave Kai out of her story but Parvati doesn’t miss it.

“And you stayed at Kai Alpert’s place the whole month?”

Lux nods. “I did but it wasn’t that bad, you know? _He_ isn’t that bad. Really,” she adds when everyone throws her a dubious look.

“So now Snape is Headmaster and Harry is accused of Dumbledore’s murder?” Seamus says. “And those two new teachers, they’re Death Eaters, I assume?”

“I think so,” Ginny replies. “I’m pretty sure I fought the guy last year.”

“And what does Dark Arts classes even mean?” Lavender asks.

Ezra shrugs. “It means what it says. They removed the ‘Defense against’,” he replies, making air quotes. “I think it’s pretty clear what it means.”

“What do we do now, then?” Hannah asks.

“We do what the DA was always meant to do,” Neville says somberly. “We protect and defend the school.”


	9. September 2, 1997 - 242 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And I'm back, one day late as always... This chapter is about Julian and Valentina, the next one, we are back with Lux!

Julian is looking out the window when Valentina enters the kitchen. He looks sad and it makes her heart ache to see him like this. She only came to get him because she wanted to keep him close to her and safe. She realizes now that she didn’t properly evaluate the pain it would cause him to go into hiding like that, without warning anyone.

Yesterday was a weird day. Julian was very angsty the whole morning, his eyes on the clock at all times, practically holding his breath. His legs were bouncing frantically as they sat around the table for breakfast, which drove Valentina crazy.

“That’s it. I’m officially a fugitive,” Julian told Valentina when the clock struck eleven, announcing the departure of the Hogwarts Express.

“Maybe, but a safe one,” she replied, pointing her fork at him between two bites, hoping to cheer him up.

It didn’t do much, however. Julian’s spirit had already reached rock bottom by then. It was a shame because he had woken up cheerful enough, but the _Daily Prophet_ and its news crushed any hope he could have had about his day.

Valentina practically didn’t see him after that.

Today, she is willing to be more understanding, especially because she wants him to come with her to the Ministry. When she enters the kitchen room, it is with her head held high and a kind smile she practiced in front of her bathroom mirror while she got ready.

“Hey,” Valentina says, coming to pour herself a cup of coffee next to him.

“Hey,” Julian replies, more out of habit than anything else. He is leaning sideways against the wall, eyes fixed on the plains outside.

 _Not good enough_ , Valentina thinks. “You okay?” she asks, despite already knowing the answer, wanting to push more than one syllable out of Julian.

“What do you think?” he replies a tad harshly, finally giving her his attention. He sounds mad but, mostly, he looks sad. When their eyes cross each other, Julian sighs. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you, I just… I miss Nova,” he says sombrely before rolling his eyes and pushing himself off the wall. “And I miss Ezra, and Lux, and the DA, and school. And I worry about my parents, my brother, and my sister,” he lists as he starts to pace around the room.

“I know,” Valentina tells him with an understanding smile that annoys Julian more than anything.

“Then why can’t you just let me contact her!” Julian pleads, looking at Valentina with the saddest puppy eyes she has ever seen. She doesn't comment on it, however, guessing it wouldn’t go over too well. “Or any of them? I still have the DA coin and I can see them using it. Malfoy found a way to get people inside the Room of Requirement from the outside last year! Perhaps I could find a way too and-”

“Julian, you can’t,” Valentina cuts him off, raising her hand to emphasize her words. “It’s too dangerous. Don’t you get it? The Death Eaters are controlling Hogwarts now. What would happen if you were seen? They’d kill you!”

“Well, my friends are over there, so what do we do? We stay hidden here while the Death Eaters kill _them_? You know, I thought you were really badass for spying on the Ministry all those years but right now, I’m starting to think it was just a great hideout for you. You don’t risk anything. You just wait and see.”

Valentina takes a few steps toward him and stares, a heated look in her eyes, pointing a finger at his chest as she says, “Don’t talk to me like that, Julian. You don’t know shit about what I’ve been through these past few years. You don’t know what it’s like knowing terrible things are about to happen but being unable to do anything besides letting someone else decide what to do with the info. Trust me, if I knew a safe way for you to contact your friends, I would help you, but I don’t. My priority is your safety right now, not your happiness,” she admits a bit too truthfully.

Julian crosses his arm over his chest and raises both of his eyebrows. “That’s nice to know. Thanks.”

The hurt barely hidden in Julian’s eyes makes Valentina cool down a little. With a sigh, she rubs her forehead in frustration. “Look, Julian, I know it’s hard for you to trust me…”

“It is,” Julian agrees with a hard nod, something in his eyes making Valentina lose her temper once more. The glint she catches there seems to be a sign of him _wanting_ to hurt her with his words.

“Why did you even come with me if you’re so mad at me, anyway?” Valentina asks, her jaw set.

Julian shrugs. “You didn’t really leave me a choice.” When she keeps staring at him, he sighs, wrapping his arms around himself. “I was scared, I guess. And you seemed the safest option, at the time,” he admits, refusing to look at her.

Valentina stays silent at first, then she says, out of nowhere, “I want you to come to the Ministry with me.”

Julian stares at her, mouth agape, then says, “I literally just said that you seemed like the safest option, _you_ keep saying that you want to keep me safe, and now you want me to go to the Ministry, where everyone wants to _arrest_ me? Very funny.”

Valentina rolls her eyes. “I’m serious. I have to go today and I am _not_ leaving you here by yourself. I told you, you’ll drink Polyjuice potion, don’t worry.”

“Yes, of course, because you just happen to have some Polyjuice lying around here, somewhere,” Julian says as he gestures at the room.

“Dumbledore used to have Snape make some in great quantities so that I always had some,” Valentina starts to explain as she goes to the living room. Julian follows her to the doorway and stands there. “Obviously he didn’t know it was for me,” she adds as she kneels down and opens the thing with a tap of her wand. The door opens to reveal several vials and flasks, as well as ingredients and books.

“I’m not drinking anything prepared by Snape,” Julian informs her, grimacing as he looks at the cabinet as if it was about to explode.

“It’s safe, I promise,” Valentina assures him with a small, tentative smile that Julian doesn’t return. “Trust me?” she asks, surprised when Julian lets out a loud sigh and kneels next to her.

“Okay. But I better not regret it.”

*******

A few hours later, Julian stands in the middle of the living room, wearing an expensive suit a bit too big for him. He looks at the glass of Polyjuice he is holding, the liquid heavy and brown, and finds himself already regretting it. Spying doesn’t seem to be as fun as he imagined it.

“Okay,” Valentina says, handing him a strand of hair. “Do you happen to speak any foreign language?”

“Is French foreign enough?” Julian tries to joke. When Valentina just stares at him. he rolls his eyes. “Yes, I do,” he replies as he drops the strand in his glass. Right away, the liquid changes into a clear-looking, blueish one and Julian winces at the idea of having to drink it. “Why?”

“You need a new identity and the more foreign you appear, the easier it’ll be for you to stay unsuspected. You are now Julien Belfort, my new assistant. You know anything about Beauxbâtons?”

Julian shrugs and stares at the drink. “Only what the French told us during my fourth year,” he mumbles. “Whose hair is it?” he asks, looking up at Valentina.

“Muggle man in his twenties,” Valentina tells him. “That’s all the box said.”

“The box?”

“Yeah, when Dumbledore gave me the Polyjuice, he also gave him several boxes of hair for different occasions.”

“Dumbledore gave you boxes of hair?” Julian repeats, looking disgusted.

Valentina ignores him. “Come on, drink up,” she instructs him, clapping her hands.

Julian frowns at her smile then back at his drink. “You’re enjoying this way too much,” he says before downing his glass. “Oh god,” he breathes out once he is done, looking sick. “How do people do this?”

Valentina shrugs. “I don’t know. Never tried it.” In front of her, Julian slowly transforms into the Muggle in his Twenties.

“What the-” he yelps, surprised as he looks at his now long, skinny, white fingers. “I’m white!”

“And quite handsome, may I add,” Valentina replies. When Julian makes another disgusted grimace, Valentina chuckles. “There’s my Julian,” she says, patting his head.

Julian frowns and goes to the bathroom to stand in front of the mirror. He looks at himself in awe, touching his face as if to make sure it really is him.

After the first shock of “holy shit, I’m white,” comes the second shock of “holy shit, I’m tall.” Julian could probably compete with Gabriel, now. His hair is black and messy and a bit longer than he usually likes it. He runs his fingers through it to comb his bangs backward, out of his eyes, which are small and black. He also now has a beard that absolutely fascinates him, who has yet to grow one.

“You done looking at yourself, Narcissus?” Valentina calls from the living room.

“You’d want to look at yourself too if you suddenly changed appearances,” Julian replies, coming back to the living room. “How long is it going to last?”

“It was a pretty strong dose so several hours, I hope. Just in case,” - she hands him a flask - “I put some more in it.”

“Thanks,” Julian replies, sliding the flask in the inside pocket of his jacket.

“One more thing.” Valentina reaches into the cabinet and hands Julian a wand.

“Wh- How?”

“Dumbledore gave me all sorts of things,” Valentina replies, forcing the wand in his hand. “Don’t start asking now, we’ll still be here in a week. You can’t go to the Ministry with yours. They check wands when you enter and they have the register of all the Hogwarts students’ wands, including yours.”

“This is so messed up,” Julian says with a shake of his head as he looks at his new wand.

“I know,” Valentina says flatly. “Come on, try it.”

Julian points at a book sitting on the coffee table. “Accio.”

The book wobbles but flies to Julian who catches it mid-air.

“That will do,” Valentina says with a nod. “Now, let’s go.”

Together, they leave Valentina’s mansion, Julian looking like a fawn learning how to walk. Valentina chuckles all the way to the fence and only stops when they are ready to Disapparate. They Apparate a few seconds later in an alleyway in London, near a broken telephone box.

“Go in there,” Valentina instructs Julian, going in after him and closing the door.

“This is the Ministry entrance? Magic is _so_ messed up,” Julian breathes out, not for the first time of his life.

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Valentina replies out of habit, used to it by now.

She puts a muggle coin in and dials 6-2-4-4-2. They wait a few seconds then a voice speaks up as if someone was standing there with them.

“ _Ministry of Magic - Visitor Entrance. Welcome. The Ministry is shut down for the rest of the day. Please direct all of your requests by owl to Sephora Carlisle, Head of the Visitor Management Service._ ”

Julian looks at Valentina, who frowns. “My name is Valentina Weger. I have an important appointment,” she states, her voice loud and clear as if the more authority she puts into her tone, the more chance she has to enter.

“I don’t think-” Julian starts but doesn’t get to finish, the voice cutting him off, as it speaks up again.

“ _Special authorization for Valentina Weger. Welcome to the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and business,_ ” it says as Valentina stares at Julian with a cocked eyebrow.

“Of course,” Julian says with my roll of eyes, as Valentina shrugs and smiles, as if to say, _What can you do?_

“Valentina Weger, I have a meeting with Corban Yaxley and Vinicius Nott,” she enunciates, a proud gleam in her eyes as she looks at Julian.

“Julien Belfort, and er… I also have a meeting with Corban Yaxley and Vinicius Nott, I guess,” he repeats, looking annoyed, then pauses, and does a double-take. “Wait. Vinicius Nott? As in Gabe’s father?”

Two badges appear as Valentina nods. “The man himself. Be careful down there, okay? Don’t react if you see anyone you know. Here, put this on. And remember, you’re French now.”

“ _A vos ordres, Capitaine_ ,” he replies with a salute.

They both pin their badges to their jackets just as the box starts to vibrate and descend.

When they reach the Atrium, Julian looks at it in awe. The room is vast. Its walls are made of dark marble and its ceiling is so high Julian can hardly see it. However, his admiration quickly turns into confusion and apprehension when he takes a closer look at what is happening. There are people being lined up in front of a gigantic fountain in ruins and people, that seem to be either aurors or snatchers, talking to them. Rows after rows of chimney expand behind them but they all seem to be closed off by gates. A desk has been set up near the cabin-lift, probably to welcome exceptional visitors, and Julian notices with horror that the woman standing there is none other than Sephora Carlisle, Nova’s mother.

“ _The Ministry wishes you a pleasant day_ ,” the cabin voice says as Julian stares at the tall, skinny, black-haired woman that looks over a parchment near the desk.

“That’s Nova’s mom,” Julian hisses at Valentina as the door opens.

“Shut up,” Valentina hisses back.

“Miss Weger!” Sephora Carlisle looks up and greets them when they approach. She smiles at Valentina before looking suspiciously at Julian who tries to disappear behind Valentina. It, however, proves to be harder than usual now that he is as tall as a building.

“Good afternoon, Ms Carlisle,” Valentina tells her with a smile that makes Julian’s skin crawl. The fakeness, almost carnal aspect of it doesn’t sit right with him but he figures it must be Valentina’s Ministry smile. It’s too sweet, too bright, too engaging. “What happened here?” Valentina asks, looking at the water on the floor, the wreckage, and the people being lined up right in front of them.

Ms Carlisle seems to tense up at Valentina’s question. She rolls the parchment and clears her throat before answering. “I’m afraid we have been attacked, Miss Weger,” she replies, looking shifty.

“Attacked?” Julian speaks before thinking, biting his tongue right after.

“Yes,” Ms Carlisle says shortly, still looking at him dubiously.

“By whom?” Valentina asks, more loudly than necessary, probably to bring the attention back onto herself.

“Harry Potter, Miss Weger,” Ms Carlisle answers, worry crossing her face.

Julian chokes, not as used to schooling his face and reactions as Valentina seems to be.

“What did he want?” Valentina asks, voice falsely cold.

“I’m not sure anyone really knows, Miss Weger,” Ms Carlisle replies. “I’m sure Mr Yaxley and Mr Nott will be able to tell you more during your meeting. I’m afraid, however, that they won’t be able to see you now. Mr Yaxley is interrogating the witnesses and Mr Nott is in a meeting. If you don’t mind coming through, I’ll have one of the assistants bring you to the salon so you can wait for them comfortably.”

“That would be nice, thank you,” Valentina replies, stepping forward and presenting her wand to one of the employees that sit behind Ms Carlisle.

“Miss Weger, Ma’am!” the employee yelps, standing up abruptly, taking his hat off and bowing clumsily to her. “I didn’t- I don’t-”

“Come on now, Jonathan,” Nova’s mom calls out sternly as he stutters. “We don’t have all day.”

“Yes, yes, of course.” Jonathan comes around his desk and holds up a golden rod, an object meant to detect any spell of appearance modification.

Valentina realizes with horror that she didn’t think that part through and quickly turns her fearful expression into one of disgust.

“Is this really necessary? Don’t you know who I am?” she asks coldly, wincing inside at how many times she has already used this excuse.

Nova’s mom is shaking her head at Jonathan who looks completely dumbfounded.

“I’m sorry Ma’am but that’s the procedure, I-”

“I’m sure my wand will be enough,” she cuts him off, handing him her wand.

“Yes, of course,” Jonathan replies as he takes it, bowing again before putting the wand on the wand-reader. It buzzes and vibrates and a piece of paper comes out of it. “Twelve inches, Black Willow Tree, Veela hair. Been in use for fifteen years,” the employee says out loud. “Welcome to the Ministry, Miss Weger.” He bows his head again and hands her her wand back.

She nods at him then steps to the side to let Julian through.

Julian stares at Ms Carlisle as he walks past her, then presents his wand to Jonathan. He looks at it, reaches for the rod again then looks at Valentina and thinks better of it. He takes the wand and puts it on the wand-reader then reads the results out loud.

“Eight inches, Oak tree, Dragon heartstring,” he says, then frowns. “I’m afraid this wand doesn’t exist in our register. Who are you, young man?”

Julian opens his mouth to answer but trips over his words, making himself look like a fool. Valentina steps forward, addressing Jonathan directly. “His name is Julien Belfort. He is my new assistant. He comes from France so please excuse him for his poor English.”

“Do you have any proof of that, Ma’am?” Jonathan asks, scratching his head and looking at Julian as suspiciously as Ms Carlisle had.

“I don’t see why I would need any. Do you not trust my word?” Valentina asks, looking imperious.

“I do, Ma’am, I do,” Jonathan says quickly, raising both of his hands and recoiling. “But understand, we have just been attacked and I don’t know who he is. If you don’t have proof we’ll have to contact the French Ministry for their registration forms. It may take a few hours.”

“That won’t be necessary,” a voice suddenly calls out.

Julian and Valentina turn around to watch Kingsley march toward them. Julian tries not to look too relieved.

“I know this kid,” Kingsley says when he reaches them. “You are Miss Weger’s new assistant, right? Yes, of course, we saw each other a couple of weeks ago. Let him through, Jonathan.”

“You vouch for him, Sir?” Jonathan asks, looking terrified, stuck between two of his higher-ups and his favourite singer.

“Yes, I vouch for him,” Kingsley replies, rolling his eyes.

Jonathan looks back at Julian, not too convinced but hands him his wand back. “Alright, you can go, mate.”

Julian tries to not look as scared as he feels when he crosses over and joins Valentina, who manages to simply look bored.

“Thank you, Ms Carlisle, thank you, Jonathan,” she says with another fake smile.

“How about you wait for Corban and Vinicius in my office, Miss Weger?” Kingsley says, already starting to walk toward the lifts. Valentina and Julian follow closely behind him, Julian looking around, trying to take in everything. “We’ll be able to pick up where we left off.”

“That would be very welcomed,” Valentina says.

“You’ll forgive our lack of hospitality,” Kingsley tells them as they reach the lifts. It’s a round room, surrounded by lifts that keeps coming and going. The few people that are in them look very focused and barely pay attention to them. “We have had a busy morning.”

“Or so I’ve heard,” Valentina says, a look of distaste in her eyes as she looks back at the wreckage.

They ride the lift silently despite being alone, the voice announcing their level when they get there.

“ _Level two. Department of Magical Law Enforcement._ ”

They follow Kingsley out of the lift and down a long corridor. They pass by several different doors as well as many open spaces where the aurors have their desks. Most of them aren’t here, Julian guessing that they must be out looking for… well, him. When they reach his office, Kingsley whispers something to the door, tapping his wand against the handle. It opens on its own and Kingsley invites Valentina and Julian inside. He enters after them and closes the door quickly, throwing several protection spells on it. He turns around, then, and looks at Valentina. “Who is our mutual friend?”

“Dumbledore,” she replies easily, sitting down on a chair, already slipping out of character.

“Is this Julian?” Kingsley asks, gesturing toward Julian.

“I am,” Julian confirms. “You know me?”

Kingsley nods. “Valentina talks a lot about you.”

“She does?” Julian looks at Valentina, who seems to be trying to hide her blush.

“Alright, sit down,” Kingsley tells him, going to sit down behind his desk.

“What happened?” Valentina asks urgently once they’re all settled.

Kingsley sighs. “Harry, and I’m assuming Ron and Hermione, infiltrated the Ministry.”

“ _Why?_ ” Julian asks right away, practically on the edge of his seat.

Kingsley shrugs, looking defeated. Now that Julian can see him clearly, he notices that Kingsley looks way older than he ever saw him in the newspaper. And tired. “We don’t really know but the situation is dire. We’re thinking about having an emergency meeting tonight. Valentina, I think it’ll soon be time for you to reveal yourself to the Order.”

“Are you sure?” Valentina asks, fidgeting a little. Julian frowns at her visible discomfort.

Kingsley shrugs. “I honestly have no idea. But with Alastor gone, I’m in charge, and now that Harry openly attacked the Ministry, they won’t hold back. They have a reason to look for him now, a reason he served them on a golden plate. We need all the manpower we can get.”

“They’re not doubting you, are they?” Valentina asks.

Kingsley shakes his head. “No, but Arthur’s position is more fragile than ever. He’s being watched closely. I wouldn’t be surprised if I was too. We’re being extra careful, all of us that haven’t been exposed as Order members just yet. Tonks is on pregnancy leave so she’s safe for now. I’m afraid we need you more than ever, Valentina. We need info on the Death Eaters and on Hogwarts but now that the Death Eaters control the Ministry, they mistrust anyone that isn’t one of them, even those that could agree with them, like Charles Astor. He is kept out of some meetings. Some of their plans for Hogwarts is still kept hush hush too. My guess is that they’re trying to hide to the parents that work for the Ministry what they plan on doing. And unfortunately, Minerva can no longer contact us, not with Snape breathing down her neck, and Abelforth can only give us so much so we don’t really have eyes on Hogwarts. You, however, should be able to get us info. ”

“I’ll see what I can do,” Valentina agrees with a nod.

Julian stares at them, guessing they want him to stay quiet but unable to. “Can’t you work with the DA?” he jumps in as if the answer was obvious.

“Julian, not now,” Valentina sighs.  
“No, I’m serious,” Julian protest, refusing to be shut down again. “If things go down at Hogwarts, they’ll be in the front lines! They’ll want to help!”

“It’s too risky,” Kingsley replies. “We have no safe way to contact them.”

“Malfoy managed to get people inside the school via the Room of Requirement,” Julian reminds them again. “If we do the same, maybe-”

“It’s not safe,” Kingsley interrupts him. “Hogwarts is controlled by the Death Eaters now. We can’t use the children and we can’t send anyone there safely because we would need someone to open the Room over there. Besides we aren’t powerful enough to take back Hogwarts. Valentina is our best option. And you too, now.”

Julian leans back against his chair and crosses his arms over his chest, tired of being bribed with fake responsibilities.

“Did you see Potter and his friends?” Valentina asks, ignoring Julian’s sulking.

“I didn’t, no. I was with the Muggle Minister when it happened. They called me back after, said that the security of _our_ Ministry was more important than _theirs_.”

“So we’re full-on hating muggles now, uh?” Julian speaks up again. “Just asking so that we’re all on the same page,” he adds petulantly when Kingsley and Valentina turn to him.

Kingsley looks at him sadly when he replies. “My guess is that their long-term goal is to fully embrace their allegiance. They started with Muggle-borns, then the muggles themselves, and soon they’ll go for any wizard that doesn’t pledge allegiance to You-Know-Who. But again, you and Valentina will be able to get us more info. As for Harry, Ron, and Hermione, we don’t know where they’ve gone. Remus said they were at our former headquarters, but I heard Yaxley say that he had followed them there and that they were gone.”

“Should we-” Julian starts saying but he is interrupted by a buzzing noise. Kingsley makes a sign for them to stay quiet and taps his wand on a little box on his desk.

“Kingsley Shacklebolt?”

“Sir? Mr Yaxley and Mr Nott are waiting for Miss Weger in the Xanadu meeting room.”

“Alright, I’ll take her to them. Thank you, Demetra.”

They hear another buzzing noise then Kingsley looks back at them.

“Anything else you need to say before we go back out there?”

“You’ll let us know, right?” Julian asks. “If anything happens with the Order?”

“Of course,” Kingsley confirms when they all stand up. “I’ll set up a new appointment as soon as I can. Now please, follow me,” he says as he opens the door. “The meeting room is this way.”

*******

This time, the lift takes them to an even higher section of the Ministry. They cross a corridor then turn right, entering a new one. The corridor they enter is lined with wooden doors, on which different colour names can be read. _Sarcoline. Coquelicot. Smaragdine. Mikado. Glaucous. Falu. Wenge. Fulvous_. And finally…

“Xanadu,” Kingsley says, letting Valentina and Julian step forward.

As soon as he knocks, the door opens on a greenish room, with a long, dark brown, wooden table, and matching chairs. Vinicius Nott and Yaxley sit at the further end of the table, looking deep in conversation, countless of parchment rolls scattered between them.

Julian sees them before they see him and for a moment he is scared he won’t manage to hide the mix of rage, disgust, and fear that bubbles inside of him. The sight is startling. Julian recognizes Corban Yaxley right away. He saw him that night, on top of the Tower, sending spells toward them as he followed Draco and the rest upstairs. The sight of him talking, scheming, with Gabriel’s father makes Julian’s stomach turn. He has never met Gabriel’s parents - Gabriel made sure of that - and, by looks only, he probably wouldn’t have known that the man standing with Yaxley was his friend’s father. However, the way Vinicius holds himself, head held high, standing in an almost regal way, makes him the spitting image of his son.

“Valentina!” Yaxley greets her warmly, smiling with all his teeth on display, looking more like a shark ready to devour his prey, than like a welcoming friend. “A pleasure, as always,” he whispers as he bends to kiss her hand. “Thank you, Shacklebolt, for bringing her here,” he adds when he straightens up, looking disdainfully at Kingsley and Julian. “And who is that?” he asks, looking at Valentina as if Julian wasn’t standing right there.

“My new assistant, Julien Belfort. From France.”

“From France?” Yaxley repeats, looking delighted. “Brillant. I’m sure _Julien_ will be happy to share some of his knowledge of the French Magical law, with us!”

Julian nods once, the only gestures he can manage, he feels, without exploding.

“Well, I guess I’ll leave you to it,” Kingsley tells them, nodding to Valentina and retreating quietly toward the lift. The sneer on Yaxley’s face made Julian’s skin crawl.

Vinicius joins them once he’s done rolling up the parchments, walking toward them slowly, still looking very much like his son. “Miss Weger, I’m glad you’re here,” he says, shaking her hand. “You probably heard about what happened this morning? We had to change the agenda for this meeting. Please come on in.”

Vinicius lets Valentina enter, then follows her inside, Julian and Yaxley behind them. When Yaxley closes and locks the door, Julian feels like a stone just dropped in his stomach.

“Now that Potter revealed his true face,” Yaxley starts as soon as they sit down at the table, “or well rather... now that the world knows what Potter is really capable of, the Minister thought necessary to reassure the population. He fears that if we publicly pay too much attention to Potter and his little rebellion, the people will get scared. There’s nothing more awful than a former icon spiralling into madness like that. So to reassure the people, the Minister wants us to focus on reforming the British magical world and he wants to start with Hogwarts. You might have heard about the recent appointment of Severus Snape as the new headmaster? Well, Nott here is to thank for that, as well as for the nomination of the Carrow siblings. In addition to their classes, they’ve been asked to take care of all disciplinary issues. As magical secretary for Education, Nott also has several decrees that will need public support, decrees that will reform the Defense Against the Dark Arts and Muggle Studies programmes, and the detention system, among others. That’s where you come into play. We would like you to give an interview in the _Prophet_ to show your support of this new direction the Minister and the Ministry want to take. We are also thinking about organizing a charity gala here, at the Ministry, to raise fund and support the new decrees. We wanted to ask you to be the chair of the event. What do you think?”

Julian stares at Valentina while Yaxley speaks. He is absolutely flabbergasted by both Yaxley’s words and the ease with which Valentina listens and nods, looking nothing but attentive. When Yaxley prompts her to answer, she pursues her lips. She doesn’t speak for a while, instead, she appears to be thinking. Julian thinks he catches a glimpse of horror in her eyes and he prays that neither Yaxley nor Vinicius see it. It surprises him. Valentina has been so good at keeping up her facade so far he doesn’t understand why she looks so horrified suddenly.

“I think this is a brilliant idea,” Valentina says, her face only marked by approval, “and I would be delighted, as always, to help the Ministry and defend its values and beliefs. Julien and I will work hand in hand with the school board, Vinicius, for these projects to be a success.”

Julian quickly turns his head toward Yaxley and Vinicius and nods, hoping they don’t notice how sick he feels.

Yaxley and Vinicius look at each other then back at Valentina, their lips stretching into triumphant smiles that turn the blood in Julian’s veins into ice.

“Excellent,” Vinicius says.

*******

Valentina and Julian don’t speak until they are back inside Valentina’s house. Julian tries several times on the way there but Valentina shushes him right away every time.

It isn’t until they get inside the house, when Valentina starts pacing, whispering, “This is bad,” to herself, that Julian guesses the silent ban is lifted.

“Val?” he asks tentatively, as he feels his body shift back to normal.

“This is bad, Julian,” Valentina says loudly, her eyes shooting up toward him.

Now that they are as far away from the Ministry as possible, Julian notices that Valentina’s “Ministry mask” is gone, replaced by her real, right now horrified, face.

“What is? The Ministry? Yeah, I mean, we knew it would be bad but-”

“No, no, you don’t get it,” She cuts him off, continuing to pace, her hands flying everywhere. “Kingsley was right when he said that Potter messed up. Him breaking into the Ministry was a golden opportunity and they’re going to use it until they can’t anymore. Potter already looked pretty guilty, but now, with Snape and Nott in charge of Hogwarts and Harry on the run after breaking into the Ministry, people will have a hard time believing the truth. He is the new public enemy, not You-Know-Who. And if people no longer focus on You-Know-Who, it’ll be easier for him to get where he wants. But that’s not just it…” Valentina trails off and Julian sees the same look than back at the Ministry cross her eye. “What they asked of us today, what they asked of _me_ … they aren’t so open about it usually… it’s an unspoken something between us, usually, nothing more… today, they were open with me… They trusted me… and I think…” she pauses, as if the thought was too awful to be spoken.

“What?” Julian prompts her, feeling his stomach tie into a knot before he even understands what’s going on.

“Julian, once these people start trusting you, there’s only one step left…”

Julian frowns then gaps in realization.

“You don’t think that they’re going to-”

Valentina shrugs, defeated. “I do. I think the Death Eaters are going to recruit me, and I don’t think no will be an option.”


	10. September 3, 1997 - 241 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This new chapter is a Lux chapter, with a bit of DA and the first Dark Arts class :)

They have been back at Hogwarts for one full day and Lux can hardly recognize her school already. She feels like an idiot for believing that Dumbledore’s death wouldn’t change a thing, but Parvati tells her that she shouldn’t beat herself up for being hopeful. After that, Lux tries to keep her head up, to be the new Anya of the group, and stay positive, but it is hard to ignore the ball of dread that forms in her stomach as she gets out of bed this morning.

Yesterday was, on paper, an easy enough day. She began with double Transfiguration, then had lunch, went on with an hour of break, Charms, and then finished with her Arithmancy class. Before the battle of the Astronomy Tower, this would probably have been Lux’s favourite day of the week. On her first day of class after the battle, however, she failed to look at things on the bright side.

It was as if an army of Dementors had been unleashed in the castle. The atmosphere was just gloomy. It was like back in the old Umbridge days but ten times worse. People didn’t linger in the corridors. They spoke in low voices and quickly made their way to their next class. At lunch, the mood was more relaxed but it still lacked the usual cheerfulness of the first few days of class. Inside the classrooms, it was even worse. Lux and her classmates could see that their professors were worried; McGonagall looked sombre, Flitwick seemed constantly distracted, and Vector acted more permissive than usual. Even the building itself appeared to have gotten the memo. From walls to doors, from furniture to moving portraits; it all seemed so bleak.

During the day, Lux often saw other DA members, shared classes with most of them even, but they kept their distance, going back to their old 1996 habits. After lunch, the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws of the group tried to corner them to talk about their Defence Against the Dark Arts classes but Pansy and her friends conveniently appeared around the corner at the same time and didn’t leave until the bell rang. The friends parted ways, silently promising each other that they would meet up soon.

Lux also saw Nova, Adelia, Sage, and Ash but they all seemed to ignore her and that was perfectly okay with her. Their fight in the train had left a bitter taste in her mouth and she wasn’t about to forget them.

If Lux is one thing, it’s spiteful.

The one person Lux did look for in the corridors, unknowingly at times, very knowingly at others, was Kai. However, he seemed to have vanished. Lux briefly saw him at Breakfast and then, nothing. No trace of him anywhere. She almost asked Ginny about him when she bumped into her on her way to the bathroom, but she stopped herself before she could voice her thought, not really knowing where she, or Kai, stood.

Nothing this morning seems to indicate that her day will go differently, at least not until she and her friends reach the Great Hall.

The entire room is abuzz when they get there. Neville and Lux look at each other, wondering what could cause such a reaction from their classmates when Ginny frantically waves them over. The group - Neville, Lux, Lavender, Seamus, and Parvati - walk over to her and sit down on the benches.

“What’s going on?” Lavender asks, looking over at the Slytherin table where the students look particularly cheerful.

“This,” Ginny all but spits, throwing the _Daily Prophet_ in front of them.

**UNDESIRABLE NUMBER ONE HARRY POTTER  
BREAKS INTO THE MINISTRY FOR MAGIC**

The front cover of the journal shows a picture of Harry at the Ministry, looking angry, probably during his trial for underage use of magic.

“That can’t be real,” Lux says right away as Neville takes the journal to read the article. “Why would Harry do that?”

Ginny shrugs. “I don’t know. But it’s true. They have witnesses quotes and pictures. Look.” Ginny nods toward the journal, at the moving picture of Harry and two other people, two grown adults that Lux has never seen, running toward the chimney, away from Yaxley who seems to be throwing spells at them.

“They say that Harry and two accomplices stole the identities of Ministry employees to enter the Ministry. They helped a handful of criminals to escape the Ministry and then, they ran away,” Neville explains, putting down the journal.

“Two accomplices,” Lux says at the same time as Seamus repeats, “Criminals?” with a frown.

“Muggle-borns,” Parvati replies with a nod. “I heard Nott, Zabini, and Alpert talk about it. Nott said that the trials had started and that it was the Ministry number one priority. As for the accomplices,” she goes on, reading quickly through the article, “they’re pretty sure that one of them is Hermione. For some reason, they think that the other one is either Dean or Julian.”

“Why not Ron?” Lavender asks.

“Because he has Spattergoit,” Ginny replies calmly, as if it was obvious, taking everyone by surprise.

Lux goes to ask but stops herself when she sees the look in Ginny’s eyes. _Later_. Instead, Lux says, “So what? They broke into the Ministry to release muggle-borns, and that’s it? That’s very chivalrous of them, don’t get me wrong, but why take such a risk?”

Ginny shakes her head, looking defeated. “I don’t know. But they just gave the Ministry and the Death Eaters an excellent reason to go after them.”

“You really think that people will believe that Harry is… what? Dangerous? A deranged criminal who’s trying to overthrow the government?” Seamus asks, his eyes full of disbelief.

“That’s exactly what the Ministry wants people to think and that’s exactly what they’re going to think,” Neville replies, leaning closer to them, his voice lowering. “I mean think about it. Some of us were at the battle and we have no idea what really happened up there. We trust Harry, of course, but what proofs do people have? They weren’t there that night. From their point of view, that’s the second time Harry is the only witness of a suspicious murder. First, there was Cedric and he said it was You-Know-Who. Remember how people reacted? I mean, even you Seamus, we don’t blame you anymore, but remember what you thought of Harry? Not everyone got over it. And now, it’s Dumbledore, a man with whom Harry spent a lot of time last year for Merlin knows what. And that was already pretty suspicious, but now he dies, falling from the top of the Tower, and it’s Harry we see running away. And Harry blaming Snape doesn’t help at all. Harry blames _Snape_ , a man people know Harry never liked, a man that was Harry’s father’s and godfather’s worst enemy. Snape is also a reformed man that Dumbledore has always trusted. And now the Ministry appointed him Headmaster. So who is going to look the guiltiest? The guy who runs the most prestigious magical school in Europe or the guy who breaks into the Ministry and runs away?”

The group looks at Neville, mouth agape, looking horrified. He sees their reaction and shrugs, looking sheepish. “I had a lot of time to think about it,” he explains.

“If you’re right,” Lavender starts, “and I’m pretty sure you are, what are we going to do? The resistance was already pretty weak but now, no one will want to join us.”

Neville shrugs. “We’ll have to do with what we have. For now, we have to make sure Hogwarts stays safe.”

*******

They finish their breakfast, then they make their way to their first Dark Arts class. The subject is now mandatory, which means that the Gryffindors are back to sharing the class with the Slytherins. It’s a pretty pathetic sight to see, both of their groups having diminished since the last time they have had joint classes.

When Amycus Carrow opens the door to the classroom, the Slytherins rush inside, taking up the front row seats. The Gryffindors linger in the back, Neville and Seamus, and Parvati and Lavender sitting together. Lux sits down behind the girls and is getting her stuff out of her bag when she feels someone sitting next to her. When she looks up, she is greeted by the sight of long, jet black hair, silver-rimmed glasses and milky white skin. Sage Choi.

Lux pretends she didn’t see her and goes on with her routine, writing the date and subject on top of her parchment, and waiting for the class to begin, looking pointedly at the back of Lavender’s chair.

“Lux,” Sage whispers, sounding already annoyed, probably because she has never liked being ignored.

Lux hums distractedly, pretending to find Lavender’s ponytail fascinating.

“You read the _Prophet_ , I assume?” Sage whisper-asks her, also looking straight in front of her.

At the front of the class, Carrow is writing on the blackboard. Lux takes advantage of that to look at Sage.

“I don’t think now is the time to talk about this,” she hisses before looking back again.

“I think it’s the perfect time, actually. The only moment I’ll get you alone.”

“What do you want, Sage?” Lux asks with a sigh.

“I just hope you realize what you’re risking.”

Lux raises an eyebrow and chances a glance at her. “And what is it that I’m risking exactly?”

“Nova knows you sneaked out on the first day.”

“What? You’re spying on us now?” Lux frowns at Sage, giving up on pretending to be attentive. Carrow doesn’t pay attention to them anyway, still scribbling.

Sage ignores her and goes on. “You’re a known associate to Harry, Lux. We worry about you. We worry about all of you. Please don’t risk more than you can.”

Lux wants to laugh at her. “Do you hear yourself talk? A ‘known associate’,” she repeats with a roll of eyes. “And what am I risking exactly? My parents work for the Ministry and will always root for the government. My brother is missing. I don’t see what I’m risking.”

“Your life! Ezra’s! Mr Cohen’s!”

“Mr Cohen is safe, and Ezra and I, we know what we’re doing. Why can’t you accept that we want to fight? We won’t force you to join the resistance if you don’t want to, but let us fight the way we want to. As for Harry, I’m sure he had his reasons to break into the Ministry. If anything, that means things are happening. Did you read the article? He freed muggle-borns! Harry, Ron, and Hermione, they aren’t just running. They’re _fighting_ , and soon others will do the same. I don’t get why you’re against that.”

“Because we want to live, Lux,” Sage replies, exasperated. “Don’t you get it? We don’t stand a chance. You guys could have died last year. They got _Dumbledore_ , for Merlin’s sake! What makes you think you’ll last longer?”

“ _Snape_ got Dumbledore!” Lux protests, her voice low. “Dumbledore got betrayed by someone he trusted. If anything, that taught me to be more careful about who I can trust now,” she says, looking pointedly at Sage.

“You think we’re going to betray you?” Sage asks, looking offended. “Fine, don’t trust us. It’s not like it’s brand new information, anyway, right? We’ll leave you alone, don’t worry. I just thought I would warn you. While you’re still alive, that is.”

Lux stares at Sage while Sage looks away. She opens her mouth to say something more but she is cut off when Carrow speaks up, finally paying attention to them.

“Alright, let’s get started, then,” he says, clapping his hands together. “Welcome everyone to your first class of Dark Arts. Before we start I want to assure you that none of the stuff we’ll study this year will be something you’ll have seen before. My goal is to make you all understand why magic is so important, why it needs to be protected at all costs, and how to use it to its full potential.” He pauses, looking at his students expectantly, waiting for them to take in what he just said. “Headmaster Snape, in agreements with Magical Secretary Nott, decided to open up the curriculum. This year, we’ll study subjects that have been long forgotten and that deserves to be brought back to the table. We’ll begin with simple stuff, but as the year will progress, we’ll study in-depth topics like Fiendfyre, Unforgivable curses, and Horcruxes, among others. Before we start, does anyone have a question?”

Pansy practically jumps off her seat, her hand raised as high as possible.

“Yes? Parkinson, right?”

“That’s right, Professor,” she replies with a giggle, looking proud to have been recognized. “Professor, when you say that we will study those topics ‘in-depth’, do you mean that we will learn to use them?”

Carrow gives Pansy a twisted smile that makes Lux’s skin crawl. “One step at a time, alright? We’ll get there when we’ll get there. But I appreciate your enthusiasm. Ten points to Slytherin.”

Seamus and Lux share a silent, worried look. It’s not that new, this kind of treatment toward the Slytherin house; Snape was already pretty well known for his loose hand when it came to giving out points to his students. What really gets to them is the casualness of the conversation, the calm determination in Carrow’s voice as he implies that they will _learn_ those Dark Arts, and not defend themselves against them.

The rest of the first hour goes this way. Carrow presents the programme, the Slytherins humour him, and he gives them points. The more the class goes on, the more Lux look at the board, horrified with the turn the programme takes. She hasn’t heard of half of the topics they will cover, and the one thing she can remember about the other half is: _bad, do not use_. Next to her, she can feel Sage shift but she ignores her, her pettiness overpowering any friendly feeling she could have toward her.

“This year,” Carrow goes on when the second hour of class starts, “I thought I would get you up to speed with some Dark Arts History. I’m sure _Binns_ ,” he says, sneering, “didn’t cover the story of Dark wizards so I’ll do it myself. We’ll have time in the months to come to talk about many wizards you probably have never heard of, but I want to start with Gellert Grindelwald, since his ideas and his war helped shaping the world we know now. You.” He points at Sage, leaning against his desk. “You’ve been quiet. What can you tell me about good ol’ Gellert?”

Sage gulps but doesn’t waver. She stares at Carrow, her eyes never leaving his face and answers. “Grindelwald was a Dark wizard who spread terror during the twentieth century. He was vanquished by Dumbledore in-”

“Yawn!” Carrow interrupts her, arms crossed over his chest. “I don’t care about that. I don’t want you to blindly repeat what your ghost teacher told you. What can you tell me about _him_? Do you know anything about Grindelwald that you didn’t read in your History of Magic class?”

Sage opens and closes her mouth but no sound comes out of it. Lux can feel her losing her edge and decides to step in.

“Gellert Grindelwald was born in Switzerland,” she says loudly, staring at Carrow, almost challenging him.

Carrow pushes himself off of his desk, one eyebrow raised, and looks at her with a smirk.

“And what’s your name, girl?”

“Lux Astor.”

Carrow looks pleasantly surprised when she says her name. “An Astor? Well, I’ll be damned. I didn’t know that Astors could be Gryffindors. I thought they were all brainy Ravenclaws. What else can you tell me about Grindelwald, Astor?”

Trying to keep her voice even, and remember what she read in Nyx’s book, Lux goes on. “He was born in Switzerland, in a family of five. His entire family disappeared a few years after he was expelled from Durmstrang. At the time, he was thought to be a victim as well, since no one knew where he had gone. When he reappeared and became the wizard we all know, many people believed that he was the one who attacked his parents and siblings.”

Carrow looks at Lux, his eyes boring into her and making her feel uncomfortable. “Anyone can top that?” he asks, never taking his eyes off of her. When no one speaks up, he sighs, looking disappointed, and shrugs as he turns around. “Well, good enough, I guess. Five points to Gryffindor.”

He walks to the black board and traces the letters “Gellert Grindelwald” on it.

*******

When the class ends, Seamus, Neville, and Lux make their way to the Room of Requirement while Lavender and Parvati head off to Divination. With their coin, they send out a message to the members to meet them there if they are free. Ezra and Ernie turn up just a few minutes later, followed closely by Ginny.

“What’s up?” she asks when she closes the door behind her.

“We’ve just had double Dark Arts,” Neville replies as she sits on one of the couches, “and it was very scary.”

“Haven’t had the pleasure yet,” Ginny replies with a grimace.

“Carrow is creepy,” Ernie says. “We had him yesterday and he kept going on and on about how the professors before him lost their time with rubbish while we needed to hear about real Dark Arts.”

Seamus nods before chiming in. “He’s fascinated by the Dark Arts, talked about it as if it was the most beautiful thing in the world. He talked about Grindelwald for an hour… Sounded like he fancies him or something.”

Ginny shrugs. “I don’t know why you’re all so surprised. We knew this would happen.”

“I don’t know,” Lux admits, “I didn’t think he would be so open about it. He implied that we would learn to _cast_ Unforgivable spells.”

This takes Ginny aback. “Really?”

“Really,” Neville confirms with a nod.

“Carrow gave Pansy ten points because she liked the idea,” Seamus adds.

“Typical,” Ezra says with a roll of eyes. “Anyone had the sister yet?”

Ginny shakes her head. “No, but I did see her, though. She asked me to come to her office for a little ‘chat’.” She makes air quotes with her fingers and rolls her eyes. “She really wanted to know where Ron was.”

“What did you tell her?” Lux asks, remembering their conversation earlier.

“That he has Spattergoit,” Ginny says again, looking as casual about it as before.

“Okay, what’s up with that?” Lux asks as Ezra asks softly, “What the hell is Spattergoit?”

“It’s a nasty disease,” Ginny explains, folding her legs against her chest. “We’re pretending that our Ghoul is actually Ron, but sick. That way, the Ministry doesn’t question his absence here and my family is left alone. They sent a few Ministry employees to check if it was true and they saw the Ghoul. It’s a really contagious disease so none of them came closer to really check. They saw the ghoul in Ron’s bed and they can’t prove that he was with Harry at the Ministry, so they can’t really do anything but trust us.”

“So your family is still safe?” Ezra asks.

“For now, yeah,” Ginny replies, “but I don’t know for how long. George and Fred closed the shop and Bill is using his honeymoon as an excuse to not go to work. Charlie moved back home; officially to take care of Ron, but really to take care of mum. As for my dad… Now that the Ministry has fallen, his time is running out. They already didn’t like him much so now… I doubt the Death Eaters really care about objects being cursed to hurt muggles. I think we’ll have to hide soon. If anything, Percy is safe, at least,” she says with a joyless smile and a shrug.

“This is so fucked up,” Ezra sighs, laying back on the chair he occupies. “What about you, Neville? How’s your grandma?”

“She’s alright,” Neville says, sounding way more confident than Ginny. “She’s tough, tougher than me, for sure, or anyone I know. Besides, she’s pureblood,” he adds with a grimace. “I don’t think that they would dare to go after her because of that.”

“So your grandma is safe, the Weasleys are safe, for now. My parents are the one going after your families so no worries there,” Lux tries to joke but it comes out bitter and everyone gives her a sympathetic smile. “Ezra’s dad is in the US. What about you guys?” Lux asks, turning to Seamus and Ernie.

“Same as Neville,” Ernie replies, shifting in his seat. “My family is pureblood so we’re safe, I guess? Mom doesn’t work, dad works at St Mungo’s. They’ve left us alone so far. You?” he asks, turning toward Seamus.

“Mom’s terrified,” Seamus says. “She’s scared they’ll come for her because she married a muggle. Dad… I don’t think he quite realizes what’s happening. He understands that there’s a war but he keeps saying that Mom will protect him. It drives her crazy. I think they’re going to leave the country. She has family in Spain and she always says that one day she’ll move there so why not now?”

Lux listens to her friend, nodding along while thinking back to what Sage told her. When they’re done she lets out a snort, that gets everyone’s attention on her.

“Sorry. It’s just something Sage said earlier.”

“Yeah, what did she tell you exactly? We heard you guys fight but you were whispering we could barely make out what you were saying,” Seamus asks her.

Lux tells them what Sage said, how she claimed to be worried, how Nova saw the message and told her friends. When she’s done, it’s Ezra’s turn to snort.

“Nova and Adelia gave me the same speech. Ernie, Hannah, and I were at the library at the same time as them. They cornered me when I went to get a book, talked about how I was being careless and I should stop following you around like a lost puppy. Their words,” he adds when Lux raises an eyebrow at him. “By the way, do I really look like a huge push-over? ‘Cause I’ve been getting that vibe lately…” he jokes, making everyone smile.

“Nah, just a Hufflepuff,” Ginny replies, making everyone laugh some more. “Don’t sweat it, Ezra,” she adds more seriously. “They’re just trying to make Lux into the bad guy. They want you to turn against her.”

“Yeah well, I hope that once they hear Carrow wank over how great Grindelwald was, they’ll understand why we want to fight,” Lux retorts with a roll of eyes.

“Yeah, by the way, Lux,” Neville chimes in. “How did you know that stuff about Grindelwald?”

“Nyx has this book about the Pure-blood families myth, that basically debunks the one Cantankerus Nott wrote about the Sacred Twenty-Eight. There’s a chapter about the families that went extinct, like the Gaunts, or the Lowes. It doesn’t just focus on British families, though. It talks about all the known pure-blood families in the world, among which was the Grindelwald family. It says that Grindelwald lived in Switzerland with his parents, two pure-blood wizards, and his two sisters at the end of the nineteenth century. After he was expelled from Durmstrang he moved to England. He disappeared after that and many thought he had gone back to his family. When his family disappeared, people assumed he was with them, since no bodies were found. When he rose to power, however, he became the principal suspect in his family's disappearance but it was never proven. When asked about it during his trial, he claimed that he had no idea what had happened to his family.”

When Lux is done, everyone looks at her, as if ready to hear more. When no one speaks up, Ezra does. “Maybe they hid.”

“What?” Ginny asks, eyebrows drawn together.

“Grindelwald’s family,” Ezra explains. “Maybe they hid. I mean, imagine you discover that your son, or your brother, is a magical nazi? I know I’d want to hide. And that’s what Gabriel did.”

Neville frowns. “Yeah, but once he was arrested, they could have come out? They weren’t in danger anymore and they had to know everyone in Switzerland was looking for them.”

Ginny shakes her head. “Grindelwald was vanquished in 1945. That would make him, what? Around sixty, seventy? His parents were most likely dead already and his sisters, if still alive, were pretty old too. If you lived that long in hiding, you might not want to come out and reveal the truth, especially if it’s to say that you’re related to the guy who murdered countless of people.”

“So if Ezra is right, you’re saying that there might be people today, who are the great-great-great nephews and nieces of Grindelwald or something?” Ernie asks, looking not too convinced.

Ginny shrugs. “Maybe.”

“You think Dumbledore knew about Grindelwald’s family?” Ezra asks after a bit.

Lux looks at him, unimpressed. “Wait. Don’t tell me you believe this crap.”

“I kinda do,” Ezra replies, looking embarrassed. “No, listen!” he adds quickly when Lux makes a disgruntled sound and the others look at him, shaking their heads “I bought the book and-”

“You bought the book?” Ginny repeats loudly, incredulous. “Oh, Ezra…”

“It’s an interesting book!” Ezra tries to defend himself as the others struggle to contain their laugh and judgement.

They spend the rest of their break making fun of Ezra and his interest for Rita Skeeter’s book while he pouts and blushes. When they leave the Room of Requirement, Lux stays behind with him and bumps their shoulders together.

“Don’t take our teasing too harshly, we’re only joking.”

Ezra wrinkles his nose but smiles. “I know. But careful there, I might run to Nova and Adelia if you continue.”

Lux pretends to be offended, putting her hand over her heart. “You would never. You’d be lost without me,” she jokes, her lips stretched into a teasing smile.

Ezra’s smile fades then and he stares at her, looking suddenly very serious and vulnerable. “I would,” he admits. Lux’s smile disappears as her mouth opens and closes without any sound coming out of it. Ezra shrugs, giving her a self-conscious half smile. “I’ll see you later, alright?” he tells her as he starts walking backward.

She stares at him and nods, completely swayed by the raw emotion behind his statement, having no idea where it came from.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be about Gabriel, Selene, Anya, and Nyx!


	11. September 12, 1997 - 232 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We back (on time now x)) with a new chapter, this time centered around Gabriel and Nyx.
> 
> About this chapter, I realize that if the 12th of September really was Lux's birthday, she should have either been of age at the beginning of the summer or a year under but this is me writing myself into a corner so lets just pretend she got to attend Hogwarts a year early because her parents are influential at the Ministry and got her an early admission, alright?

Gabriel isn’t sure what time it is exactly when he wakes up but he knows it’s early. The light in the room is still dim and the air that breezes over him is cold. He breathes deep and reaches for his wand, more out of habit than real need.

He doesn’t need a few seconds to remember where he is anymore. At first, he always did. He would wake up with the sensation that he was somewhere he shouldn’t be and the thought would make him stand up quickly, wand in hand, ready to attack, defend, or Disapparate. More often than not, he would, in his anguish, knock over the unfamiliar furniture, which usually made Nyx, Selene, or Anya rush inside his room to see what was happening. Now, he has gotten used to his room inside the tent, to the rich red of the fabric, the dark brown of the furniture, and the multitude of objects scattered around. When he wakes up now, he feels calm, almost rested, and proceeds carefully with the rest of his morning routine.

Gabriel likes to go outside in the early morning and look at the view while everything is still quiet. The view is breathtaking. They found themselves a vast cave carved inside the mountains that stand high above Hogsmeade and Hogwarts, thinking for sure that no one would think about looking for them here, of all places.

At first, they went to Selene and Anya’s childhood home. However, it probably was a bit too obvious a hideout because the snatchers found them quickly. After fighting them off, they escaped and settled in a forest in which Nyx used to go hunting with his father. When the snatchers found them again, despite the protection spells, they ran out of ideas. It was then Selene who thought of coming here, remembering Sirius talking about how he had hidden there to be close to Harry. Nyx hadn’t been so sure it was a good idea, given that it was so close to Hogwarts, but it was their only option at the time so they went.

They have been here for almost two weeks now and so far, it’s been pretty safe. It is weird, however, being hidden in a cave while the world, and the war, go on. Even weirder knowing that the school and their friends and family are right there. They steal _Daily Prophets_ almost every day to keep themselves updated. Usually, it’s Gabriel or Nyx who take care of it, in case they get caught. The news they read doesn’t reassure them in the least, however. They read, powerless, as Snape and the Carrows got nominated, as Harry slowly became the new enemy, and as the muggle-borns hunt began.

It was a surprise for Gabriel and Nyx to discover that the _Prophet_ , the Ministry, and their families were using them to justify their pure-blood supremacists ideas. It upset them even more when they realized that the journal had managed to make it seem as if both Nyx and Gabriel agreed with those ideas.

They know they won’t be able to stay so close to Hogwarts and Hogsmeade for long. Soon, the students will be able to go to the village and they can’t risk it. It’s hard, however, to leave the cave when they know they don’t have many hideout options left.

When Gabriel leaves his room, the tent is completely silent. He tiptoes around to reach the entrance, trying to not disturb his friends’ slumber. The tent is a vast hunting lodge they “borrowed” - Nyx’s word - from the Alperts. The living room and the kitchen are at the center of it; there’s a coffee table surrounded by chairs, a dining table, shelves that holds a hundred of books, and a kitchenette. Gabriel’s and Anya’s bedrooms are on the left side of the tent while Nyx’s and Selene’s bedroom as well as the bathroom are on the right. Gabriel is always slightly tense when he walks to the entrance of the tent, scared he’ll wake anyone up. When he reaches the threshold, it’s always oddly satisfying. That’s why he isn’t ready when he hears a voice come from outside of the tent.

“Already awake?”

Gabriel practically jumps, yelping. “Merlin, Nyx, you scared me,” he breathes out, his hand over his hammering heart.

“Sorry, mate,” Nyx chuckles, amused by Gabriel’s startled face. “I hear you get up every morning and I thought I would beat you to it this time. Totally worth it, by the way.”

“Ah ah,” Gabriel replies flatly, coming to sit next to Nyx.

They sit on an uneven rock near the entrance of the cave and look at the view in silence, both from tiredness but also in contemplation. Eventually, Nyx starts to shift a little and when Gabriel looks at him to see what’s going on, Nyx sighs.

“It’s her birthday.”

Gabriel nods, knowing full well how Nyx must feel. He had the same thought when he woke up. _Lux_.

“You okay?” he asks Nyx, feeling foolish but guessing Nyx needs to talk about it.

“I don’t know,” Nyx replies with a shrug. He keeps his eyes straight ahead, looking as the sun rises. “It’s not like it’s the first time we don’t spend it together. It’s been _years_ since we’ve celebrated it together, actually. But she always knew I was thinking of her. I always sent her a letter and a present. This year… She won’t get anything.”

“She knows you’re thinking of her,” Gabriel tells him, shaking his head. There’s no universe in which Lux doesn’t know how much she matters to Nyx.

Nyx ducks his head and kicks a few rocks at his feet. “I know, I just… I feel bad for leaving her like that. She’s my responsibility now and I feel like I’ve let her down.”

Gabriel gives him a half-smile. “Lux is her own responsibility and you know it. She’s tough. If anyone can get through this, it’s her. Besides, she’s in good hands with the Alperts.”

Nyx looks at Gabriel. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” Gabriel replies confidently. “They’re good people. They’ve always been kind to me. They’ll take care of Lux.”

Nyx sighs again and looks away, not very convinced. “I hope she manages to trust them. She’s been very paranoid these days. Can barely trust her own shadow.”

“She told you about Adelia, Sage, and Ash?” Gabriel assumes. He knows what Nyx means and he guessed they’re both a little responsible for it.

Nyx nods. “It’s sad that they aren’t as close as they used to be. Especially Sage, Ash, and Lux. They were friends before they could even speak. But I guess it’s bound to happen when you grow up. The friends you had when you were ten won’t be the same when you’re twenty. That’s just life. We grow up and we grow apart. Look at Selene and Val. They were best friends and now one of them is part of the resistance, the other is pro-Ministry... But it works the other way around too. If I remember correctly, the Alpert kid is Nova’s sworn enemy and yet…” Nyx trails off and Gabriel doesn’t know if it’s because he doesn’t think he needs to finish his sentence, or because he wants Gabriel to finish it for him.

“And yet,” Gabriel repeats without offering any explanation because it’s fun to see Selene and Nyx trying to get it out of him without asking him directly.

Nyx rolls his eyes. “You really don’t want to tell us, uh?”

“You haven’t asked anything, Nyx,” Gabriel replies.

“Alright fine. What’s the deal with Alpert?” Nyx finally asks, making Gabriel smile.

“See? Wasn’t too hard, was it?”

Nyx huffs out a laugh. “You do realize we didn’t ask you because we know how closed off you can be, right?”

“Alright, that’s fair,” Gabriel admits with a smile and a snort. “I’ve known Kai for years,” he starts explaining, playing with his fingers and not looking at Nyx. “He’s a Slytherin so we basically lived together this whole time. But we never really spoke, we weren’t part of the same circle. I was usually by myself and he was with Zabini and Theo.”

“Your cousin? Weird choice of friends,” Nyx comments.

“Yeah, it’s…” Gabriel starts replying but he makes a vague hand gesture, not sure he wants to get into it now. “We’ll get to that part later. Anyway. Remember when the DA was exposed? How mad your parents were at Lux? Well, it was the same for me. I received a letter from my mother.”

“An Howler?”

Gabriel looks at Nyx, amused. “You’re serious? You really think my mother, the great Reine Keita of Equatorial Guinea, would embarrass herself by causing such a scene? Nah, she sent me a letter, a _strong_ -worded letter,” he emphasizes, raising his index. “She reminded me what plagues would fall upon our family, and myself, if I ever participated in such activities again. Her words,” he adds with a short, humourless laugh. “That’s when I first started doubting my family’s allegiance. Your parents… they were mad at Lux because it was bad for their image to have a daughter openly opposing the Ministry. My parents… it was different. I knew I had to hide my own allegiance and for that I needed to learn Occlumency. That’s how I found William Alpert’s Summer school. He began teaching me Occlumency, and we started talking. He was very nice to me, very kind and very easy to talk to. We started having lunch together after class and one time, Kai joined us.”

Gabriel pauses then, remembering the events. It feels weird, saying it all out loud for the first time. He never shared this story with anyone before. There had been that time Julian caught them but they never spoke of it again. And he had wanted to tell Lux many times but he never did, knowing how judgemental she can be sometimes. He smiles at the thought, then. Not so long ago, keeping his relationship with Kai a secret was primordial to Gabriel, as he feared it would ruin his friendship with Lux and Nova. Now, however, on the run, trying to hide from his family, the Ministry, and the Death Eaters, it seems silly to have given it so much importance.

“You knew he was Kai’s father?” Nyx asks, seeing Gabriel getting lost in his thoughts.

Gabriel nods. “Of course. I knew William’s last name and he kept talking about his son so it was pretty easy to put two and two together. The first lunch was very awkward,” Gabriel recalls with a small smile.

It seems crazy to him how clearly he remembers the terrasse outside of London where William’s Summer School was based, the sandwiches and chips they ate, and the way William tried to keep the conversation going while Gabriel and Kai stared down each other.

“The only things I knew about Kai were the stuff Nova, Ginny, and Luna told us. So at first, it was hard to get past that. But I kept having lunch with William and Kai came every single day. After two weeks, things became easier between us and I could see in Kai the son William kept talking about rather than the jerk Nova hated so much. One time, after lunch, Kai stayed behind and we began really talking. We talked for hours that day. And the day after that, he stayed behind again, and the day after and the day after. It took him one week to finally admit why he had come to have lunch with his father in the first place…” Gabriel trails off, biting his lips before his smile can get too big.

“Awww,” Nyx coos. “He had a crush on you,” he sing-songs, poking Gabriel’s shoulder.

“Stop it,” Gabriel says as he pushes his finger away, rolling his eyes but feeling his cheek heat up. “I… At first I didn’t know what to say, or what to do... But eventually, I told myself that I would regret it if I pretended I didn’t feel the same way. The last month of that summer was… amazing.”

Nyx grins at the small smile that stretches Gabriel’s lips. It’s so unusual to see him so relaxed and open. He kind of understands why Gabriel never told Lux, Nova, or any of their friends about him and Kai. The group would have torn their relationship to shred before it could have really started.

“So why did you two fight, then?” Nyx asks, not understanding why Gabriel looks so smitten when he told them that Kai and him had fought pretty badly.

Gabriel’s smile collapses at Nyx’s words and Nyx wants to kick himself for it. “We dated for the whole school year. It was surprisingly easy to spend time together without attracting suspicions.”

“Ah, the joy of being surrounded by horny, self-centered teenagers,” Nyx jokes, making Gabriel smirk.

“It wasn’t like I wasn’t one of them either but yeah definitely. They were all so busy with their own drama that Kai and I could sneak around as we pleased. It worked well…” Gabriel trails off and Nyx nods.

“But,” he says before Gabriel can get it out.

Gabriel sighs and starts kicking the rocks under his feet. “But there were times where I didn’t understand him. I fell for him because I saw another aspect of him. It didn’t mean that he wasn’t the person Nova hated so much either. Sometimes, I asked him why he behaved a certain way, why he stayed with my cousin and Zabini of all people and he always got defensive, shutting me down with phrases like ‘I don’t tell you who to hang out with’ or ‘I don’t go around criticizing your friends’, things like that. I think, mostly, he was scared. He has this… _reputation_ ,” Gabriel lets out with a grimace, “to uphold, or he feels like he has to uphold it and it makes him act like a jerk sometimes. Slytherin is a complicated house to be sorted in, you know. Same as Gryffindor, I guess, although Gryffindor is easier because everyone just assumes you’re going to be a ‘good guy’,” he says, making air quotes. “Slytherin… Slytherin is harder because the house has this reputation and it falls on you to prove where you stand once you get sorted there. People just assume you’re an asshole once you’re sorted and you have to fight against this image every day. I’m not saying it excuses some people’s behavior, I’m just saying that it’s not as black and white as people think. We’re nuanced people just like any other house, but sometimes, it gets hard, even for us, to see it.”

Nyx nods, looking thoughtful. “Okay, I can see that. But where does Kai stand exactly?”

“In what terms?” Gabriel asks, not sure he follows him.

Nyx shrugs. “Everything. Where does he stand in the war? Where does he stand in regards to Voldemort?”

Nyx has been saying He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named’s name for quite some time now, but it was always calculated. He knows the type of fear and reaction the name can produce, even to the bravest wizards he knows, so he tries to not use it this carelessly. But it’s still pretty early and he isn’t thinking clearly so it slips.

The reaction is almost immediate. Gabriel, as one would expect, winces when he hears it. Nyx grimaces when he sees it but doesn’t have time to apologize. A sudden, very unexpected Crack! breaks the quietness of the cave, making both Gabriel and Nyx jump on their feet and turn around.

A woman and a man, dressed in raggedy robes, are now standing between them and the tent, looking around.

“What the-” the woman starts saying when she spots Gabriel and Nyx, in their pajamas. “Nott! There you-”

She doesn’t have time to finish, Nyx casting a non-verbal spell that sends her crashing into the side of the cave.

The man points his wand toward them but misses when Gabriel tackles Nyx to the ground. They are protected by the rock but that doesn’t stop the man from throwing spells after spells in their direction. They can hear him coming closer as he calls out, “Come on out, you two! I don’t want to hurt you! Just to bring you home safe!”

On top of Nyx, Gabriel braces himself but the next spell doesn’t come. Instead, he hears Anya cry out, “STUPEFY!” There’s the sound of a body hitting the ground and then nothing.

Gabriel and Nyx slowly get up and look tentatively behind the rock in case they weren’t the only ones to come. Selene is standing above the woman, pointing her wand at her while Anya points hers at the man. They both look disheveled, probably from rushing outside when they heard what was happening.

“You okay?” Selene asks, never taking her eyes off of the woman.

“Yeah,” Nyx replies. “Thank Merlin for Gabe’s reflexes.”

“Tackling people always works,” Gabriel tries to joke but it falls flat as there’s no humour behind his words.

They wait for something to happen again but no one moves. When it is clear that both wizards are unconscious, Gabriel and Nyx go to their attackers.

“And what the fuck are we supposed to do now?” Gabriel curses. He looks down at the unconscious woman at his feet while Nyx kneels above the man. They are snatchers, Gabriel is sure of it now. The girl - because it’s a girl, not a woman; someone of Gabriel’s age that he remembers from his Potion classes - has a bag tied around her waist that seems full of gold and jewelry.

“I have no idea,” Nyx replies unhelpfully. He stands up from where he was kneeling, his eyes never leaving the second snatcher, “but we can’t keep doing this. This is the third time they find us.”

“I just don’t get how they did it, this time,” Selene says, wrapping her arms around herself. “Sirius always said this was his safest hideout.”

They all look at each other but no one seems to have a good explanation.

“Perhaps,” Anya starts then stops when everyone turns toward her. “I don’t know. Didn’t you say that Sirius often joked that he missed the cave when he moved back to his old house? Maybe Snape heard him and knew it was an option?”

“That snake...” Nyx hisses. He goes to stand next to Selene and rubs her shoulder. “You okay?” he asks her softly.

“I’m fine,” she says back, a small smile on her lips, trying to reassure him.

“I’m with you on this,” Anya goes on, pointing at Nyx. “Snape is a snake and I have no idea why you ever liked him, Gabe.”

“He was the head of my house for years,” Gabriel protests. “And he named me prefect. He didn’t seem like a murderer to me, at the time.”

“Please,” Anya says, letting the sound stretch out, rolling her eyes exaggeratedly. “You’ve seen his hair? No innocent person goes that long without washing it.”

Selene snorts at Anya’s retort and Gabriel rolls his eyes. Nyx, however, frowns.

“Guys, if Anya’s right, and Snape knew about this place, we don’t have many options left.”

“Sure we do,” Anya replies with a shrug. “We could move to another country. Doesn’t Julian have a house in France? Maybe he’s there.”

Selene shakes her head. “We’re not supposed to flee. That’s what the Death Eaters want us to do. Flee and weaken the Order.”

“Should we try to find other Order members, then? Regroup and prepare?” Gabriel offers.

This time, it’s Nyx who shakes his head. “We don’t know who’s safe to reach. For now, we stay together and wait for them to contact us. If they can. That was the plan.”

“Our plan keeps changing, Nyx,” Selene retorts. “I’m with Gabe on this. I think we need to try and find others like us. Perhaps free a few muggle-borns from snatchers, recruit wizards that haven’t officially joined the resistance yet.”

Anya bites her lips but doesn’t say anything. Gabriel watches her closely as Nyx and Selene keep debating.

“Selene, there’s no one available right now. And we need a place to hide if we want to plan anything.”

“We’re running in circles, right now, Nyx. We don’t have another place to hide, none that we know for sure will be safe.”

“Then we keep looking for one,” Nyx replies, crossing his arms over his chest. “We can’t stay here.”

“Alright. Where do we go then? My place or yours?” Selene asks with a roll of eyes.

Before Nyx can say anything, Gabriel steps in, still looking at Anya. “What is it?” he asks her.

Nyx and Selene look at Anya who is still biting her lower lip. She looks between them then sighs. “I just… There’s always Valentina?”

Nyx doesn’t say anything, Gabriel whispers a soft “What?” and Selene stares at her sister as if she hit her head.

“Did they hit you with a Confundus Charm?”

“I’m being serious, Selene,” Anya replies, slightly annoyed. “I know we can’t trust her, okay. But we could try? She can’t have joined them for good? Right? I mean she has to know we didn’t kidnap Nyx and Gabe. Maybe she has her reasons why she supports the Ministry and maybe she’ll want to help us?”

Nyx and Gabe stay silent, both of them waiting for Selene to say something.

Selene stares at her sister, her eyes slowly turning dark. Seeing her get angry, Nyx takes her hand. “The situation is critical, babe, you said it yourself.”

“Not that critical,” Selene snaps, pushing Nyx’s hand away.

Gabriel nods along. “We can’t risk it. At least not now. Maybe once we’re better settled, we could try but…” His eyes shift between Anya and Selene and Anya nods.

“No. I know,” Anya concedes. The look in her eyes let them all know that they haven’t heard the end of it.

“What about your classmates!” Nyx suddenly says, looking startled by his own idea.

“She’s right there,” Gabriel replies dryly, gesturing toward the unconscious woman at his feet.

“Oh yeah, that’s Marietta!” Anya exclaims as if her name was on the tip of her tongue this whole time. “She’s the girl that snitched on the DA!”

Gabriel takes a closer look at her and can indeed see the faded scars left by Hermione’s curse.

“No, I don’t mean her,” Nyx says, shaking his head. “I mean the other DA members, the ones that have already finished school.”

Anya and Gabriel look at each other, trying to remember who attended the meetings and looked serious about it.

“There was the Gryffindor Quidditch team,” Gabriel starts, eyebrows drawn together.

“Their captain, Angelina Johnson,” Anya starts counting on her fingers. “She was gorgeous and kept yelling at Harry.”

“The girl who got attacked during our last year, what was her name…” Gabriel adds, rubbing his forehead. “Katie Bell!”

“There was also Alicia… something,” Anya goes on.

The two of them manage to produce a list of names they should be able to trust, people who attended DA meetings but also people that they think could be interested. However, Selene and Nyx aren’t too hopeful when they hear it.

_“The other annoying Quidditch captain.”_

_“The guy who was at the Slug Club and kept harassing Granger.”_

_“Cho Chang from Charms.”_

_“The twins’ friend Lee.”_

_“That Ravenclaw girl that got attacked by the Basilic.”_

_“Roger Davies.”_

“Let’s start with the ones you actually know the names of, alright?” Selene says, looking at Nyx, slightly amused.

Nyx smiles back at her before turning toward the others. “Do you know where we can find any one of them?”

Anya starts thinking, tapping her fingers together, eyes lost and lips pursed in concentration. “I don’t know,” she says after a bit. “The Quidditch captain plays professionally now so it might be hard to get to him. Cho is Marietta’s friend and her mother works for the Ministry so not a good idea right now.”

“The Ravenclaw girl is a muggle-born,” Gabriel goes on, “so she’s probably on the run too.”

“There’s always Lee?” Anya offers. “He lives by himself and I’m pretty sure… No, I’m sure I know where he leaves.”

“There’s also Katie. She was cursed by Malfoy last year. If anyone wants to help, it’s her,” Gabriel adds.

Nyx nods then turn to Selene. “What do you think?”

“It’s our only lead,” she replies with a shrug.

They tie up the snatchers and Anya stands guard over them as Selene, Nyx, and Gabriel pack their stuff. When everything is ready, they regroup at the entrance of the cave.

“Where to, then?” Nyx asks.

“Sherwood Forest,” Anya replies with a grin. When Selene glares at her, she shrugs. “What? I always wanted to go there. We’ll set up a camp and plan. We can’t just show up at Lee’s or Katie’s place like hello do you want to join a weakened, in-hiding secret society and defeat the greatest threat the UK has known since Grindelwald?”

“She’s got a point,” Gabriel admits.

“Fine,” Selene sighs. “Sherwood forest it is.”

The group takes one last look at their surroundings, the castle and the village looking so far away now that they’re about to leave.

Anya takes Gabriel’s and Nyx’s hands and squeezes them. “I’m sure they’re doing okay.”

Nyx gives a slight nod and pivots.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it for today :) Next chapter is still focused on Gabriel, Anya, and co.
> 
> Some infos I want to give you:  
> \- I have currently seven more chapters betaed and ready to go (so up until chapter 18), Chapter 19 is almost ready and I am currently working on chapter 20 and 21 that are really doing my head in, if I have to be honest x)  
> \- I am also currently working on a prequel to Voldemort is going on (for Whumptober on Tumblr, you guys should check it out), it's pretty simple, one day, one prompt, one drabble. I've started working on it and I gotta say it's a nice change. I'm writing the story of the battle of the Astronomy Tower and I'll post everything on Tumblr and on here. It's all gonna be out of order and between 500 and 1000 words I think.
> 
> I hope you guys like it and see you next week!


	12. October 3, 1997 - 211 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I was really sick these past two days and completely forgot to update VIGD (oops...) But here I am!  
> This chapter still features Gabriel, Nyx, Anya, and Selene, but also Fred, George, and Lee :D

To Nyx, Selene, and Gabriel’s great relief, Anya really does remember where Lee lives and they manage to get there in one piece and undetected. They Apparate in a dark alley right after sunset, wearing heavy winter cloaks and hoods over their heads. People don’t seem to pay too much attention to them as they hurry through the streets of Oxford, everyone so cold that they only focus on getting where they are going. It isn’t winter yet, just barely Autumn, but the temperatures have already dropped considerably.

“It’s in that building, I think,” Anya tells them after a while, when they reach a residential part of the city. She points at an old five-story Victorian building in pretty bad shape, across the street.

“You think?” Selene repeats, her voice a bit strangled by her nervousness as she follows her sister’s finger with her eyes.

Anya senses her anxiety and quickly shakes her head. “No, I’m sure. I’m sure.”

Nyx nods. “Okay, let’s go then.”

They cross the street, keeping close to each other. Technically, there’s no real reason for the Ministry to look for them here but they already found them three times now so they can’t afford to take any chance.

When they stop in front of the door, Nyx turns the handle and it opens without difficulty. Nyx enters first, Anya and Gabriel after him, and Selene closes the door behind them.

“Where to?” Nyx asks Anya who looks up with a slight grimace.

Even from the inside, the building seems to have seen better days. The entrance hall looks haunted. On the walls, the wallpaper is covered in dust and some parts appear to have been eaten by bugs. The windows don’t seem to have been cleaned in ages and the lights flicker weakly. In addition to the darkness, the whole room smells unpleasant but neither of them can identify the scent. As they step forward, the wooden floor cracks under their feet, the sound resonating loudly in the room.

“Last floor, on the right,” Anya eventually says.

“Sure?” Selene asks and Anya nods.

“Certain.”

Nyx goes first, his wand raised in front of him. Anya and Gabriel follow close behind and then Selene, walking backwards, keeping an eye on the entrance. They walk up the stairs slowly, trying to be as silent as possible, which proves to be hard when it seems that the staircase is going to collapse any minute now. When they pass in front of the doors, they can hear the sound of TVs and radios, people talking, shouting, or laughing, and even what sounds like a birthday party. They reach the fifth floor a few minutes later, breathless. Nyx lets Anya take the lead so as not to scare Lee, making a vague hand gesture toward the door.

Anya takes a deep breath as she faces the door then gives it two firm knocks and waits, holding her breath.

There’s a bit where nothing happens and then the door opens slightly, Lee looking shyly through the crack.

“Yes?” He asks, the door barely open. Anya can barely guess his eyes and dreadlocks through it.

“Lee? It’s Anya. Anya Caufield.”

The door opens suddenly then and Lee stares at them, eyes wide open. He opens his mouth to say something but closes it right away, his jaw setting, eyebrows drawn together. “How did you know how to find me?”

“I-” Anya starts but stops, figuring out that it must be Lee’s way to check if it really is her. “Last year, during the summer, you sent me an owl asking me about some muggle technologies. You gave me your address so that I could reply to you, muggle style.”

Lee looks relieved, a smile blooming on his face. “Merlin, you guys!” He steps aside to let them in, shaking his head slightly. “Come on in! Quickly!”

They cross the threshold, Selene looking behind them once more before Lee closes the door, and take in their new surroundings. The flat is in much better shape than the building it’s in, most likely thanks to Lee’s magic. The walls are cream-colored and look freshly painted. The wooden floors look brand new, and the furniture looks pretty modern for that type of place; Lee must have moved in recently. The small kitchen opens on the living room, and there are three closed doors that probably lead to the bedrooms and the bathroom. The living room looks a bit cluttered. There are cardboard boxes everywhere, a huge library that looks way too massive for the room, and there’s a cauldron and a chest full of ingredients and vials on the desk under the window. In the living room area, there’s a coffee table surrounded by a few chairs, in front of the fireplace, and on them are sitting…

“Fred? George?” Anya exclaims as she rushes to hug them. “Oh my god! What are you guys doing here?”

“We could ask you the same thing,” George replies with a big smile as he hugs Selene.

“It’s _so_ nice to see you, guys,” Fred tells them while they all greet each other, hugging and shaking hands, making sure no one lost another ear or any other body parts since the last time they saw each other.

“Come on, sit down with us,” George urges them afterwards, clearing the space a bit with the flick of his wand. “We have a lot to catch up on.”

They all sit down around the coffee table while Lee goes to fetch them butterbeers in the kitchen. “We were so worried about you when we saw the _Prophet_ ,” he says when he comes back, handing everyone their drinks

“Kingsley said that it was a tactic to find you more quickly. You know, having people, as well as Aurors and snatchers, look for you,” Fred adds.

Nyx and Gabriel look at each other before nodding. “Yeah, that’s what we assumed,” Nyx replies, shifting a little on his seat. “The Notts really want Gabriel home for some reason.”

“It’s my mother,” Gabriel explains after taking a long gulp of his drink. The discomfort provoked by the mention of his family is visible as he sits up straight, looking stiff. “I think she’d rather have me locked up in our dungeons than killed by Death Eaters during a battle.”

“Oh, good,” Anya chimes in, then, her expression mockingly impressed. “She still loves you, then. Charming.”

Gabriel smiles a little at that, and Lee, Fred, and George look at him with sympathy in their eyes.

It might seem silly but Gabriel actually does believe his mother cares about him. It isn’t love and it’s not _him_ she cares about but the _idea_ of him. Reine is a Keita. Reputation and status mean everything to them. In a magical community ruled by a council made of the most powerful and influential families, staying united no matter what is a survival instinct. They can’t show any sign of weakness. More than her son, Gabriel is her _heir_ , and he is the only one she has got, so Gabriel understands. He knows that until she finds another option, she’ll do everything she can to keep him alive. He guesses this is also why she came to pick him up at King’s Cross. He has had a lot of time to think about it since then and he came to the conclusion that Reine came because she knew it was the only moment she would get him alone - Vincent not included. In her weird way, those threats were perhaps a way for her to warn him, to let him know the rest of the family, the Nott family - a completely different story than the Keitas’ - knew about him and would come for him. Reine threatened him so that he could be prepared. But Gabriel imagines she didn’t think he would run away.

“What have you been up to since the wedding?” George asks when no one says anything back, feeling like a change of subject would be quite welcome.

“We’ve been on the run,” Selene replies simply. “The snatchers found us a couple of times, but we always managed to escape.”

“Was it because of the Taboo?” Lee asks, looking almost fascinated by this prospect. The four of them, however, frown.

“The what?” they all say at the same time.

Lee nods. “Yeah, definitely because of the Taboo then,” he whispers to himself before giving them an explanation. “They cursed You-Know-Who’s name. It’s their new way of finding Order members. If you say his name aloud, it cancels all protection spells and they can easily find you. They almost got Kingsley. The Death Eaters barged in his home while he was talking to someone via his chimney. He barely managed to escape. He’s somewhere safe, now, apparently, but we don’t know where. He said he couldn’t tell us for now.”

Gabriel frowns at this development, worried about the state of the Order now. He is glad to hear that he and Anya aren’t the only new recruits, that apparently Lee joined as well, but the fact that Kingsley was compromised is worrying, given that he is the current leader of the group and was a great source of information regarding the Ministry actions.

“Do they know who he was talking to?” Nyx asks anxiously.

Fred shrugs. “Hard to tell. He didn’t say anything. It wasn't any of the members we’re still in contact with and judging by your reaction, it wasn’t you guys either.”

“Could it have been Potter?” Gabriel asks.

George makes a doubtful grimace. “Maybe, but I don’t think so. One thing is sure, though. If Harry doesn’t hurry up doing whatever he’s doing, we’re going to lose. Look at the _Prophet_ from this morning.” He stands up and goes to get the journal from a pile on the kitchen table and throws it in front of Nyx and Selene. “Last page.”

Nyx grabs the journal and turns it around to see what George is talking about. The last page displays the pictures of all the currently wanted wizards. There are no Death Eaters on there, of course, but many familiar faces.

At the center of the page, Harry looks darkly back at him, his picture bigger than the rest of them. The caption underneath it reads: _Harry Potter - Undesirable Number 1. Dangerous. Do not act without Ministry support._ Nyx looks at it for a while, eyebrows drawn together, before looking at the other faces.

In addition to Harry’s, the page shows pictures of Hermione, Dean, Julian, Justin Flinch-Fetchley, Colin and Denis Creevey, Kingsley, and of course Selene, and Anya. There are also less familiar faces like Tonks’ father, goblins named Griphook and Gornuk, a wizard named Dirk Cresswell, and other people Nyx assumes to be muggle-borns who escaped.

“Your family is still safe then?” Selene, who read the page behind Nyx’s shoulder, asks the twins, looking a tad relieved. _At least there’s always that_.

“For now, yeah,” Fred answers, but he doesn’t look too serene. “Dad’s scared, though. Now that Kingsley is out, he doesn’t think _he_ ’ll last much longer.”

“What’s the plan, then?” Anya asks.

Lee, Fred, and George all share a look before Lee speaks up. “Well, we aren’t sure yet but we’re all working on it. Fred and George got in touch with Angelina, Katie, Alicia, and Oliver, see if they wanted to join us. We’re going to try and recruit as many people as possible by word of mouth. And also…” Lee trails off as he stands up, going into another room and coming back with a box in his arms. “We’re working on this.”

He puts the box down on the coffee table and opens it.

“Is that a recorder?” Anya asks, both amazed and confused.

“It is,” Fred replies, smiling proudly.

“What is it for?” Selene asks, looking between the twins and Lee curiously.

“Well, Fred and George created a device, quite similar to Hermione’s coin, so that we could communicate with the rest of the team. It’s convenient when we want to set a meeting time and place but harder when we want to communicate with everyone. And the Order doesn’t have access to it yet so we tried to think of ways we could make it easier to relay information for the whole Order to hear, and eventually other people who want to resist too. So we thought of making this...” Lee pauses for effect, then concludes, “A radio!”

“You’re making a radio?” Gabriel states slowly as if to make sure he understood him correctly.

Lee nods enthusiastically, clearly proud of their idea. “We’ve had this idea for a while now. We wanted to make one back at Hogwarts, but we never got around to actually do it. Now, though, it could actually help people. We could have people come to talk about the resistance and the war and reassure some people about their families and friends. We need a way to tell people the truth about the war, and while I think Lovegood is brilliant, I don’t think people are taking him seriously yet,” he admits with a grimace.

“We’ve been working on it for months now,” Fred tells them, just as excitedly. “Ever since the wedding got attacked. We should be ready to broadcast it in a couple of days, tops!”

“For now, it should only be us three but with time we’ll ask Order members to join in,” George adds. “The only thing we need to figure out is how to spread the word. We’ll send a message of course, but that’s only for the Order. We need to hit a bigger target than that. Thankfully, Christmas break is coming up so we can get Ginny to spread the word through Hogwarts when she goes back.”

“What happens if the Ministry gets a hold of it, though?” Nyx asks. It seems like a great idea on paper but no one’s plan seems to work accordingly these days.

George shrugs. “We’ll run, then. Hide somewhere. That’s why making a radio is so brilliant. They can’t stop us. We can record it anywhere. Anyway, they’ll have a hard time finding it. We’ll protect it with a password. People will have to search the frequency while saying the password to catch it. Oh, and also we’ll have codenames to protect our identities.”

“You mentioned Hogwarts,” Gabriel says then, tensing up again. “You have any news?”

Fred, George, and Lee share another look, but this time it is rather distressed than enthusiastic. “Not really,” Fred says. “Ginny sends letters to Mom and Dad but she can’t say anything interesting.”

“Anything about Lux?” Nyx asks anxiously.

George shakes his head no. “Sorry, mate.”

“We do know that the DA got back together,” Lee jumps in, trying to cheer up everyone. “You guys still have your coins, right?” When Gabriel and Anya both nods, he goes on. “Pay attention to them, they often send messages through them. It’s fun to see what they’re up to.”

“Isn’t it dangerous?” Nyx asks, looking more worried than reassured.

Anya shrugs, taking a sip of her beer. “I don’t know about that. It was already pretty risky under Umbridge.”

“Yeah but Umbridge wasn’t a Death Eater,” Nyx retorts.

“She literally tortured Harry and Lee, Nyx,” Anya says, eyes wide. Next to her, Lee unconsciously rubs the back of his hand.

“I know that,” Nyx replies, rubbing his forehead. “I just… We don’t know what the Carrows are capable of. There’s no hold back anymore. The Ministry is on their side, the headmaster is on their side.”

“Yeah but the other teachers are still there,” George says as he sits back down, crossing his arms over his chest. “I, for one, trust McGonagall, Flitwick, Sprout, and Slughorn to protect the students against them. We have to have faith, right?”

Nyx nods but he doesn’t seem too convinced. “Right.”

“What about the rest of the Order?” Selene asks, deciding to change the subject, once more. It doesn’t do them any good to imagine what might be going on at Hogwarts right now, not when they have no way to know for sure.

Fred sighs before answering. “We’re all over the place. Some are unreachable at the moment and others are hidden in safe houses. My parents and Charlie are still at the Burrow, but not for long. And Tonks is at her mother’s.”

“Safe houses?” Anya repeats, very interested in the concept, tired of sleeping in the tent.

“Moody began setting them up when we lost the 12, Grimmauld Place. We only found out about them when we rescued Harry, this Summer,” George explains. “There’s Aunt Muriel’s, the Tonkses’, and many others. I think Kingsley was working on expanding the network when he got attacked. He said that he was hidden in one of them at the moment but he couldn’t yet tell us where exactly. But you guys should go to Bill’s. He and Fleur have a house by the sea and it’s safe. It might be time for the Order to start regrouping and prepare for the battle, anyway.”

“You want us to prepare for a battle we have no idea when or where it will happen?” Gabriel asks as he stands up. He starts to pace, looking frustrated. When they came here and saw the twins, he thought that they would get to hear about what the Order had planned. He has to admit now that he is disappointed by the fact that the only action they plan on taking is starting a radio show.

“We have to wait for Harry-” George starts but Gabriel cuts him off, rolling his eyes.

“Why do you people always act like this is _his_ fight?” Gabriel snaps. When he realizes how harsh he sounds, Gabriel sighs and tries to relax his voice before he goes on. “I mean, I get that he is You-Know-Who’s chosen one or whatever, but he isn’t the only one affected by the war and the Death Eaters. We all have reasons to want his reign of terror to end.”

“No one disagrees with that,” Lee replies with a sigh. “But at the end of the day, it’s Harry who’s going to face him. Not us.”

“So we wait, uh?” Gabriel asks. “While he does Merlin knows what…”

“Yeah,” Fred replies as if it was obvious. “That’s what you signed up for. That’s what we _all_ signed up for when we joined the Order. I’m sure Nyx and Selene know better than us but that’s what Dumbledore intended. Trust Harry. That’s what he always told Kingsley, Remus, and Moody, right?” he asks turning to Selene and Nyx. “Trust Harry, believe Harry, follow Harry, right?”

“Right,” Selene says softly while Nyx stares at Gabriel.

“How can we follow him when we have no idea where he is and what he does?” Gabriel asks, deflating.

“I kinda agree with Gabe,” Anya suddenly says, taking everyone by surprise. In the DA, rare were the members that didn’t really like Harry. Mainly Gabriel and Nova. Anya however, along Ezra, Julian, and Lux, was one of his biggest fans, so it is a surprise for her friends to hear her say these words. “The fight, the war, it’s happening _right now_. People are disappearing. People run. People are attacked and arrested. People are killed and tortured and we’re expected to wait for Harry to do his thing? Personally, I think that your radio idea is amazing. But I feel like we should be doing more. There are people out there, running away, like maybe Julian, who might feel like they can’t fight back because they’re all alone, but we actually have the power to _do_ things so why shouldn’t we?”

They all look at Anya when she’s done, Fred, George, and Lee looking thoughtful.

“It’s not like we can just show up at the Ministry and attack every Death Eaters we run into,” Fred replies.

“No. Of course not,” Anya says back as she rolls her eyes. She is honestly surprised by the passivity of the Weasley twins and Lee. “But there has to be something we can do. Like maybe go after the snatchers,” she proposes, remembering her talk with Gabriel, Nyx, and Selene, back in the cave. “You talked about following Harry. Isn’t that what he did when he went to the Ministry? Free the muggle-borns? We could do the same, use that Taboo thing to lead snatchers into a trap and have them free the muggle-borns they arrest.”

Lee bites his lips, clearly thinking about it, then says, tentatively, “There’s always Katie.” He glances at Fred and George who catch on what he means.

“Katie? The girl who got cursed by Malfoy last year?” Nyx asks, vaguely remembering Gabriel mentioning her.

“Yeah,” Fred answers. “She’s interning at the Ministry and she ended up working at the Snatchers office.”

Selene perks up at that. “Do you think she’ll want to help us? Maybe tell us when they get called?”

Fred shrugs. “Probably. She’ll want her revenge.”

“And you guys are in?” Gabriel asks them, also picking up on their hosts’ lack of action.

“I mean, yeah,” George replies, sitting up a little, looking at his brother and Lee. “I have to admit, being in here all day is sort of driving me crazy.”

“Gotta agree with George,” Lee says. “It’d be nice feeling like we’re doing something.”

“What about you, Fred?” Selene asks softly.

“Of course, I’m in. I never say no to wreaking havoc. I’ll send a message on the cards.”

“The cards?” Gabriel repeats, one of his eyebrows raised.

George nods. “Yeah, the cards. That’s what Lee was telling you guys about.” He stands up and goes pick up a cardboard box behind the couch. He sits back down, the box on his knees, and starts searching something in it. “We made our own Chocolate frog cards, except that they’re blank,” he starts explaining, picking one up and showing it to them. “We threw a Protean Charm on them, the same one Hermione used on the DA coins. It linked all the cards together and that way, we can send messages to people who have one of those. The text appears where the wizard bio should be, and if we speak the name of someone who has their own card, we can communicate. Look.”

George holds the card in front of his face and says, “Fred Weasley.” There’s a vibrating sound and Fred takes his own card out of his pocket. When he shows it to the others, they can see George’s face staring at them.

“Wicked,” Anya whispers, making grabby hands toward the box.

George hands each one of them a card, showing them how to use it. It’s a nice spell work, a bit more complex than Hermione’s given the object’s bigger size and the added communicative mirrors, and yet easy enough to use. Gabriel is very impressed.

“You guys made these?” he finds himself asking, hoping it doesn’t come out too condescending.

Neither Fred nor George seem offended by the question, however. They both nod proudly, grinning at him.

“The hardest part was to outline the mechanics and order of all the spells we had to cast but once we figured it out, it was child’s play!” Fred replies, still beaming.

They keep talking about the cards and the radio for a few more hours, then their conversation evolves toward their plan and the Order and the DA. The lateness mixes with their tiredness and they suddenly find themselves very confident regarding the outcomes of the war. Selene lays her head on Nyx’s lap while Anya and Gabriel snuggle together in one of the chairs, George falls asleep on the floor, and Lee and Fred share the remaining chair, as those still awake enough to talk start imagining what the world will be like once they have won the last battle.

When they wake up, the next morning, they say their goodbye, Nyx, Selene, Anya, and Gabriel having decided to go see Bill next to see what they can do. They grab a few cards for the Order, promise to keep in touch now that they safely can and part ways.

“We’ll see you again soon, I suppose,” Fred tells them with a wink. “Oh and the first password will be Hope!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it for this week, next chapter, we're back with Lux and I'm exploring something that is only mentioned in the books!


	13. October 31, 1997 - 183 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting late again because my life is a mess right now and I'm all over the place x)  
> This chapter focuses on Lux and the DA and as I told you last week, it's about something that was only mentioned in the book! Hope I did it justice D:

Lux is rather sure of herself. This is the craziest plan she has ever been a part of.

It all started a couple of weeks ago. The DA was meeting in the Room of Requirement, late at night, long past curfew. The group had grown a bit since the beginning of the year with the return of Terry Boot and the new addition of Romilda Vane, and they had taken the habit of meeting up at the end of the week, to plan their actions and share stories. The original members of the DA found themselves telling Romilda and Terry about last year’s battle and the events of the summer, as well as their theories as to what Harry, Ron, and Hermione were up to. At one point, Ginny realized that she had never told the DA about Dumbledore’s will and, thus, proceeded to do so. The group, and especially Neville, sat speechless as Ginny explained that Harry had inherited Gryffindor’s sword but that the Ministry had refused to give it to him.

“It’s in Snape’s office!” Romilda babbled when Ginny was done. “Slughorn sent me to get Snape one time and I saw it. It’s in a trophy case in the back of the office.”

“You saw the sword?” Ginny asked, a plan already forming behind her eyes.

“Yes, why?”

“What are you thinking?” Neville asked, noticing the scheming gleam in Ginny’s eyes.

“I think we all agree here that the sword belongs to Harry,” Ginny said firmly, challenging everyone to disagree with her. Everyone nodded. “If the sword really is in that trophy case, we could do something about it. I mean, the office is easily accessible. We all know where it is and Romilda knows the password now so we should be able to enter.”

Padma held her breath then, eyes wide open. “You’re not suggesting what I think you’re suggesting!”

Ginny shrugged. “Of course I am. This is _Harry_ ’s sword. Placing it in Snape’s office of all people is an affront.”

Terry squirmed from where he was seated. “I mean… I get that Harry has a special relationship with that sword but to say that it’s _his_ sword seems a bit of a reach to me.”

Ginny glared at him but Lux jumped in before she could say anything. “Even then. Gryffindor’s sword is just that. _Gryffindor_ ’s. How dare Snape appropriate it like that? If anything, the sword should be exposed in our common room.”

“It’s true,” Luna interjected then, looking thoughtful. “If Rowena Ravenclaw’s lost diadem were to be found, it would for sure be exposed in the Ravenclaw tower. We do have a bust of her wearing it but I don’t think it’s too faithful. My dad says that-”

“Alright, alright,” Terry cut her off. Luna closed her mouth but didn’t seem bothered by the interruption. Or at least she didn’t show it. “Still. Stealing it from Snape’s office seems a bit extreme. I mean, what if we get caught? The Carrows are intense, mate. I don’t think it’s worth the risk.”

“Why did you join the DA, then?” Ezra chimed in from where he was standing near the fireplace. The question seemed to take Terry aback. He stared at Ezra, his mouth slightly open, as Ezra went on. “If you don’t think going against Snape and the Carrows is worth the risk, why did you join us?”

“Of course I want to fight Snape and-”

“Then why do you think we want to steal that sword exactly?” Ezra asked firmly, not letting him finish. “For Harry?” he offered, with a tilt of his head.

Ezra pushed himself off of the mantel and walked closer to Terry, arms crossed over his chest. Lux stared at him with the tiniest hint of a smile on her lips, liking this new, bossy version of Ezra.

“We wouldn’t even be able to give it to him. We aren’t doing this for Harry or because we want to do a bit of home staging. We’re doing this because we want to show Snape and the Carrows that they can’t get to us, that we aren’t scared of them, and that they can’t touch the stuff that is _ours_. We might start with the sword as a symbol but really, we want to show them that the school is _our_ school, not theirs,” he concluded with a proud smile, that widened and turned into a laugh when Seamus began clapping. “I’m sorry, mate,” Ezra added, his authoritative mask completely slipping off. “I don’t mean to be a jerk but we’re way past wondering if the risks are worth being taken. I get that you’re new to this,” he said, looking at Terry and Romilda, “but we aren’t. What we’ve been through last year…” Ezra trailed off, looking at Neville, Luna, Ginny, Lux, Ernie, and Hannah, “it still haunts us... But we have to keep going because if we stop, they win.” He punctuated his sentence with a small shrug and went to sit on the armrest next to Lux.

While Seamus leaned over Terry to bump their shoulders together and reassure him, Lux turned to Ezra.

“Good speech, Mr Bossy pants. I didn’t know Hufflepuffs had a backbone.”

“Ah ah,” Ezra replied, rolling his eyes. “I just… I’m done with people thinking we have an other option.”

Lux knew he meant Nova and their friends but she didn’t comment on it, simply grabbed his hand and squeezed it. “Yeah, me too.”

Ezra winked at her and they turned their attention back on the conversation.

In the end, the DA decided to steal the sword. To limit the risks, because they weren’t suicidal either, just hot-headed, they agreed that it would be better to proceed while they knew for sure that the rest of the school would be busy. The Halloween feast then became the most obvious choice for their heist.

While they planned for it, their other DA actions stopped. They had gotten used to get the word out there, at night, that they were still there, ready to defend the school, and that anyone was welcome to join. They painted those messages on the walls and it would drive the Carrows crazy as they didn’t seem to know who was doing it. It was a surprise that Snape didn’t accuse them right away, their professor knowing who was part of the DA back in 1996. Their freedom was, however, very welcome, as they still didn’t know exactly what the Carrows were capable of. They had yet to punish anyone, the students still very much in line, for now, scared to be the first one to face the Carrows’ wrath. The DA knew it wouldn’t last for much longer but for now, they enjoyed it.

The Carrows seemed pleased that the messages were gone, priding themselves in the fact that they had already squashed “this pathetic rebellion” and that was good news according to Neville.

“They won’t see us coming,” he told Ezra and Lux one evening, a gleeful expression on his face. “They’ll never expect this!”

Indeed, on Halloween night, nothing shows that the Carrows are expecting something. They sit at the staff table, unsuspecting, as the students gather in the Great Hall before the feast. The DA is spread throughout the castle. Terry, Romilda, Ernie, Hannah, Parvati, and Padma are in the Great Hall, to keep an eye on the Carrows and Snape, and Seamus, Ezra, Lux, and Lavender are patrolling the corridors and stairs leading to Snape’s office to make sure no one comes and interrupts while Ginny, Neville, and Luna take care of the sword.

At first, everything goes well.

Lux and Seamus are guarding one access, pacing in the corridor, when the coins heat up with Padma’s excited message: _The feast is starting_.

“Showtime,” Lux tells Seamus with a small smile.

Seamus smiles back at her but it’s a different smile, a secretive one that makes Lux pause.

“What?” she asks him, half amused, half confused.

“I don’t know. I thought we could take this time to talk,” he replies, the same annoying smile on his lips.

“What is it, Seamus?” Lux asks, rolling her eyes but smiling as well.

“Okay. What’s up between you and Alpert?”

Lux lets out a surprised laugh, then, having not expected that. “Nothing,” she says, still amused, as if it was obvious.

“Really? ‘Cause I’ve heard rumours.”

Lux raises an eyebrow at that. “You’ve heard rumours,” she repeats, “about Kai and I?”

When Seamus nods, Lux shakes her head. “Do people at this school really spend their time gossiping about me and Kai?”

“You make a sexy couple, you the daughter of two powerful wizards and him the heir of an ancient pureblood family,” Seamus tells her, wiggling his eyebrows.

Lux chuckles, her shoulders moving along. “Believe me, Kai has more prestigious suitors than the daughter of a _Daily Prophet_ journalist and a Ministry higher up.”

“What? Like Pansy Parkinson?”

Lux smirks, promising herself that if they get out of this, all of this, alive, she’ll tease Gabriel endlessly about it. “Sure, among others.”

“Okay but hear me out,” Seamus goes on, not wanting to let it go. “Sage apparently told Adelia who told Nova who told Susan who told Hannah who told _me_ that Kai has a crush on you.”

Lux huffs out another laugh at that. One thing is sure, as false as this rumour may be, it is pretty entertaining. “Sage thinks Kai has a crush on me? Why?”

Seamus shrugs, having apparently not looked that far into it. “I don’t know. Maybe he told her. They are housemates after all. What Hannah told me is that apparently, Sage talked to Kai at the beginning of the year and he talked about you a lot. She also says that he keeps looking at you.”

Lux shakes her head again because she can’t believe the things people make up when they think they’ve found some juicy gossip. “Sorry to disappoint but I can assure you that Kai doesn’t feel anything for me. We got along well this summer but that’s it.”

Seamus looks disappointed. He starts pacing again, visibly done with this conversation. Lux looks at him for a bit longer, still pretty amused and then starts pacing again as well. It’s just twenty seconds before Seamus speaks up again.

“What about Ezra, then? There’s something with him?”

Lux feels herself blush this time but tries to maintain an amused expression on her face. “Why are you so interested in my dating life, suddenly?”

“I don’t know!” Seamus says louder than necessary. He shrugs then says, “I guess, I just want to catch up with you. It’s not like we’ve talked a lot these days,” he trails off, looking sad, and Lux feels a pang in her chest, understanding what he means.

Seamus is right. They haven’t talked a lot these days. In fact, they haven’t talked much in two years. As Lux likes to point out, she isn’t like Harry. She loves him to pieces but sometimes, she doesn’t understand him. And one of the things she doesn’t understand is how easily he forgives people. Lux is known to be spiteful, and it also works on behalf of her friends. When Harry told everyone that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was back, Lux was one of the few who believed him. The fact that Seamus did not didn’t sit well with her. She refused to speak to him then, which left Julian and Dean stuck in a very awkward situation having to handle all of their friends falling out - Seamus with Harry and Lux with Seamus. When Seamus had his change of heart and made up with Harry, it wasn’t as easy for Lux to let it go. Even with Adelia, Sage, and Ash, it hadn’t been too easy to forgive. Dean tried to talk to her but Lux made it clear that she wasn’t ready. She was polite when she absolutely had to but most of the time she tried to avoid him. This year is different however, and Lux feels foolish for behaving that way until now.

“I’m sorry about last year,” Lux says truthfully, taking Seamus by surprise. I’m sorry isn’t usually part of Lux’s vocabulary. “I shouldn’t have been so hard on you. Your fight with Harry was between you and Harry and once you guys made up, I shouldn’t have kept it up, especially not for a whole year. You deserved a better friend than I was.”

“It was a pretty crappy situation,” Seamus admits with a nod. “But then again, you’re you. I knew what to expect.”

Lux can see that he’s trying to joke to reassure her but she shakes her head. “Please don’t try to make me feel better about this. I was a bitch to you and I’m sorry.”

“Apology accepted,” Seamus says easily, grabbing her hand and squeezing it. He goes to say something else but they both feel their coins heat up.

_Snape just left the feast!!_

Lux and Seamus both look at their coins and wait for anyone to say something, perhaps Ginny, Neville or Luna to tell them how they’re doing, but nothing comes. After a few minutes of anxious waiting, Ezra writes that he’s going to check on them and then he stops replying. Seamus and Lux look at each other, worried.

“What should we do?” Seamus asks, jumping when he hears a door close somewhere beneath them.

Lux bites her lips, unsure. Going to check seems a bit idiotic. It’s like those horror movies Julian and Ezra would make her watch during the holidays. One by one, the characters go see what’s happening and they don’t come back, prompting the next one to do the same. And yet, if they don’t check on them, they won’t know what’s going on.

With a sigh, Lux starts walking. “I’ll be right back.”

She jogs up the stairs and holds back a yelp when she finds herself right in front of Snape. She stares at him, eyes blown wide, wondering why Lavender didn’t warn them that Snape had gone through their section.

“Professor…” She trails off, scratching the back of her head.

“What are you doing here, Astor?” He asks, glaring at her suspiciously.

“I, er, I was… looking for you?”

“Are you asking me?” he says, raising an eyebrow.

“No! No, no,” Lux replies quickly, waving both hands in front of her. “I’m telling you. I was looking for you, sir. You see I was… I was… You know how I always struggled with non-verbal spells?” she tries weakly but the look Snape gives her let her know he is not buying it.

“Astor. I don’t know what you think you’re doing but you shouldn’t be here. Go back to the Great Hall. Now,” he orders her sternly before starting to walk again, Lux noticing in horror that he is taking the direction of his office.

“But sir, I-” she starts, trying to think of something before he walks up the stairs behind the sculpture, her eyes fixed on it, feeling all the blood drain from her face and her stomach drop.

“Now, Astor. Do not make me say it again.”

And then, Snape opens the passage.

Lux is completely frozen in her spot, breath held back. She can only stare in horror as Snape goes upstairs.

After just a few seconds, she hears him asks, “What do you think you are doing here?” His tone is calm and cold, a clear indication of his furiousness.

“Sir,” Ginny starts, but stops just as quickly, probably because of Snape.

“Out of my office. Now. Wait for me outside. And tell Astor to stay as well.”

They get out of the office quickly, knowing that there is no need to argue, given that they were just caught red-handed. Lux looks at them and they collectively shake their head in disappointment and fear. Snape jogs down the stairs a few minutes later, looking composed.

“Now, can one of you tell me what you were doing in my office?”

The calmness of his voice is terrifying. Lux would prefer it if he yelled at them. Yelling, they can handle. They are quite used to it, even, from other professors. And while Snape never really yells at his students, his voice is usually laced with annoyance, or despise. This hard, cold voice, however, isn’t one Snape often uses unless he is talking to Harry or Neville.

“Weasley,” Snape says slowly when no one speaks up. “I imagine you’re in charge, given your company.” He sneers at Neville, Ezra, and Luna. “What were you doing in my office?” When no one answers, his face hardens. “Believe me, I won’t repeat myself a second time.”

Lux’s jaw tightens at his words. _Believe me._

“We were trying to get the sword back.” It isn’t Ginny that speaks but Neville. They all do a double-take, looking at Neville in shock.

Snape raises an eyebrow at Neville, a twisted smile on his lips. “Longbottom finally speaks up,” he says, falsely impressed. “I don’t believe I have ever heard you speak this clearly in seven years. Clearly, times _have_ changed.” Snape takes a step closer to Neville and looks down at him. “So you were trying to steal the sword?”

“It wouldn’t have been stealing,” Neville replies, looking straight at Snape, his voice never faltering. “The sword belongs to Harry. We were only trying to get it back.”

His answer seems to take Snape by surprise who takes a step back, both eyebrows raised. “You were trying to steal a sword for Potter? Do you happen to know where he is hiding, Longbottom? You do realize that he is a fugitive and holding back information like these isn’t very smart. Then again...” He trails off, giving Neville a once over and smirking.

Next to Lux, Ezra balls his fists.

“I don’t know where Harry is, sir,” Neville replies, his head held high. “All I know is that this is Gryffindor’s sword, that Dumbledore gave it to him, and that it shouldn’t be _here_ ,” he practically spits, “of all places.”

Ezra holds his breath in shock and Lux lets out a small, “Neville!”

Something crosses Snape’s eyes but it’s gone before Lux can guess what it means. “I suggest you don’t finish that thought, Longbottom. You’re already in big enough troubles as it is. As for the sword, it doesn’t belong to Potter, nor did it belong to Dumbledore. It belongs to the school and will stay there for as long as the Ministry wishes. You four,” he says, pointing at Ginny, Neville, Luna, and Ezra, “will spend the next night in company of Hagrid in the Forbidden Forest. I’m also taking 50 points each off of your respective houses. As for you,” he says, pointing to Lux, “you will spend your detention with me, tomorrow evening. I’m also, obviously, taking 50 points off of Gryffindor. I will be writing letters to your parents as well, to let them know the type of extracurricular activities you have chosen for yourselves.”

Lux arches an eyebrow, confused by this turn of event. She thought for sure that they would be expelled, or at least locked up in the dungeons for a month. Instead, she has to spend the evening with Snape? Sure, it is a pretty awful perspective but it still seems manageable compared to what she imagined when he opened the door. And the others’ punishment is to hang out with Hagrid? This seems like a piece of cake. If anything, Hagrid will be happy to see them in Harry’s, Ron’s, and Hermione’s absence. What game is Snape playing? Is he trying to win them over? And what was that speech about writing letters to their parents? Lux can’t really picture Snape writing a strong-worded letter to Arthur and Molly Weasley of all people. How would that even go?

_Dear Arthur, dear Molly,_  
Remember how I betrayed you all, killed your mentor, and attacked your children? Well, now your child is challenging my authority. Please tell her that not obeying to me, a traitor, is disrespectful.  
Kind regards,  
Severus

She would pay good money to see it.

“Now go back to your common rooms immediately,” Snape orders them with a shooing motion. “I will know if you take any detour.”

They don’t have to be told twice. They walk back down the stairs and Ezra turns right to go to his common room while they continue in another corridor, and then upstairs. Luna leaves them a bit further along the way to head to the Ravenclaw tower. They tell her goodnight and start climbing the stairs toward the Gryffindor common room. They don’t talk until they have reached the fifth floor.

“What the hell was that!” Ginny exclaims, looking completely dumb-struck as she gets in front of them.

“Right? What game is Snape playing?” Lux replies.

“I’m not talking about Snape,” Ginny says back, shaking her head, walking backwards to face Neville and Lux. “I’m talking about Neville! What’s gotten into you?”

Neville blushes and shrugs but Lux can see the proud smile on his lips. “I don’t know. I just… I got tired of his attitude, acting like he deserves this spot. He’s a fraud and I refuse to be intimidated by him anymore.”

“Neville, that’s _amazing_ ,” Ginny practically cheers. “You were incredible down there.”

Lux nods. “That was very brave of you.”

“Thanks,” Neville replies softly, looking half embarrassed and half proud.

They reach the Fat Lady portrait a few minutes later and when they cross it, they are greeted by Seamus and Lavender looking extremely anxious. They both speak at the same time, quickly, their tone both worried and accusatory.

“Where were you? What happened?”

“I tried to warn you but you weren’t replying!”

“We got caught,” Neville replies, collapsing on the couch.

“I tried to warn you,” Lavender repeats. “Nott was patrolling the hall and he saw me, right after Ezra left. He asked me what I was doing here, spent five minutes trying to get me to talk and I saw Snape go downstairs but Nott was still talking to me. He eventually sent me back here and I sent you a message but you weren’t replying.”

“What did Snape do?” Seamus asks, looking very pale.

“Not much, considering,” Ginny replies with a shrug. “He gave us detention with Hagrid.”

“Really?” Seamus and Lavender exclaim at the same time.

“Why would he do that? He knows Hagrid loves us,” Seamus says.

Ginny shrugs again. “I don’t know. Now that I think about it, he was weird. He didn’t seem to really care about the sword. Not really. And he took off points but it could have been way worse. He did give Lux detention with him.”

“He did?” Lavender asks. “Why would he split you from the others?”

Lux shrugs, having no idea either. “I don’t know… I guess we’ll see. Maybe he thinks I wasn’t part of this, but that would be weird. Also, he asked us about Harry.”

Seamus makes a grimace. “Still obsessed with him, I see.”

“But you guys should have seen Neville,” Ginny jumps in. “He stood up to Snape!”

“You did?” Lavender squeals.

“Yeah,” Neville replies, his hand in his hair. “I don’t know what overcame me, I just couldn’t help myself.”

“It was awesome,” Lux tells them with a grin. “He basically told Snape that he was unworthy of the sword and the school.”

“Good lord, Neville!” Seamus lets out as the portrait opens up again. The feast had come to an end and the students were now off to bed. Romilda and Parvati rush to their group when they get inside, looking as anxious as Lavender and Seamus had been.

“What happened?”

“We’ll tell you guys upstairs,” Ginny replies, looking around them as the other students pass them by. “Come on.” She gestures toward the stairs and says goodnight to the boys, Lux, Romilda, Lavender, and Parvati following close behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it :D Next chapter will be the follow up of this, and then we'll be back with Gabriel and co, again with a scene that was mentioned in the book but never shown... (And it involves a massive HP character so I'm kinda scared lol)


	14. November 1, 1997 - 182 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here comes chapter 14! The chapter features some more Lux and the DA and some more Snape with a wild appearance from Kai :)

The rumour that Neville, Ezra, Luna, Ginny, and Lux were caught in Snape’s office spreads through the castle very fast. And, as rumours usually do, it quickly turns into more than it actually was.

When Ezra arrives at the breakfast table, his housemates practically jump on him to know what happened, and why so many points were lost. The Slytherin hourglass remains pretty full while the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff ones have known better days. The Gryffindor one, which lost a hundred and fifty points the previous night, is completely empty. It’s enough to catch the attention of most students and by midday, everyone is talking about the events of last night. The word travels fast and, soon enough, there are approximately as many versions as there are students at Hogwarts.

On her way to feed the thestrals, Luna is asked if it’s true that they wanted to steal Dumbledore’s portrait. Later, during the academic decathlon Ravenclaw team meeting, Padma hears some of the members talk about a niffler being released inside the office. As for Ginny, she hears that some students believe they were there to _kill_ Snape. This version more than the others make them laugh. They are stunned to discover that some of their classmates apparently believe that they are capable of murder, and they wonder, for just a few seconds, if they should pretend that this version is the real one.

“I don’t think they’d _actually_ believe it,” Neville says while Seamus and Lux make jokes about it. “People aren’t stupid, they know Snape wouldn’t just give us detention if we had tried to kill him.”

“People aren’t stupid?” Ginny repeats, eyebrows raised high. “They think we were about to _kill_ Snape. They think we’re capable of _murder_.”

“Should we be scared of our reputation and image at this school?” Lux wonders aloud, making the group laugh. “I mean, if we really do give out the cold-blooded murderer vibe, perhaps we should rethink some of the choices we’ve made.”

The rumours keep them busy throughout the day. They are surprisingly cheerful for people who have been caught stealing something in their headmaster’s office but Lux believes this cheerfulness is mostly due to the relief they all feel at the fact that their only punishment is a simple detention. She still wishes she could go see Hagrid with the others but she also guesses that spending time with Snape might help her get a clearer idea of what he is doing and what he wants.

She thinks about Nyx, Gabriel, Anya, Selene, and Julian, too, about how they would react if they knew. Anya and Julian would love the idea, she’s sure. Selene would disapprove but secretly, she’d like it, she thinks. As for Nyx and Gabriel, they would be such buzzkill about it, talking about consequences and making sure a plan is flawless before doing anything. Gabriel would probably say that, at least, if he had been part of the heist, they wouldn’t have gotten caught.

The group eats dinner together, at the Gryffindor table, in the far back of the room. They agreed that the other DA members shouldn’t be seen with them for a few days, to keep them out of suspicion. Now that they have been caught in Snape’s office, they believe that it won’t take the Carrows too long to guess they were also behind the painted messages, and if they can avoid drawing attention to every DA member, that would be great.

When the clock strikes seven thirty, they split up. Lux heading downstairs, in the dungeons, where Snape is waiting for her, while the rest of the group heads outside to meet Hagrid in front of his hut.

“We’ll see you later,” Neville tells Lux with a small, half-smile.

Lux smiles back at him and nods. “Have fun!”

Ezra wraps his arms around her, Lux and Ginny sharing a surprised but amused look behind his shoulder.

“Good luck,” he whispers to her.

She squeezes him, forced to admit that the hug is a welcome and reassuring gesture, and then, they pull back. Lux turns around without another word and walks downstairs as they walk through the entrance door.

The night is cold but Ezra, Ginny, Neville, and Luna are still gleeful when they reach the small house. Hagrid is waiting for them next to the fence that leads to the Forbidden Forest, crossbow in hands, Fang lying at his feet.

He smiles at them when they are close enough to see it but it doesn’t reach his eyes, the worry behind them clear, even in the night light.

“Good evening, Hagrid!” Luna says, cheerfully.

“Evening, kids,” Hagrid mumbles back, still not looking his usual, joyful self.

Ginny picks up on it right away. She frowns as she asks, “Something wrong?”

Hagrid looks around them then bends a little toward them. “What are ya thinkin’, tryna steal that sword? Ya got any idea what Snape and the Carrows can do?”

“The sword is Harry’s!” Neville protests, as surprised as the rest of the group to see Hagrid disapprove. “We had to do something!”

“You can’t blame us for wanting to fight back the Ministry!” Ezra chimes in, crossing his arms over his chest.

Hagrid opens his mouth but closes it right away, looking around again. He sighs and shakes his head, straightening up. “Come on,” he says, tilting his head toward the forest. “We’ll talk in here.”

Ezra looks apprehensively at the forest. He’s been there before but never in the middle of the night. For a very brief moment, he wishes he was down in the dungeons with Lux. Then he remembers that she is alone with Snape down there and the moment passes.

“I hope we’ll see some Blibbering Humdinger,” Luna tells him as they set toward the edge of the forest. Ezra has no idea what she is talking about but nods nonetheless.

The further they walk inside the forest, the more the light of the castle diminishes until the only source of light is the lamp Hagrid holds. The air is cold and humid inside the forest and Ezra can barely feel his cheeks and fingers. Next to him, Luna is shaking a little and he thinks he can hear Neville’s teeth chattering. _Maybe this is a real punishment, after all_ , Ezra thinks with a small, disappointed smile.

About five minutes after they’ve entered the forest, they reach some kind of clearing crossed by a small stream. Hagrid stops them there and turns around, his frame even more massive than usual in the dark.

“Of course ya can be against the Ministry! I hope ya’re!” he bellows, picking up the conversation as if they hadn’t paused it. “But those Carrows aren’t Umbridge. What would’ve happened if they’d caught ya and not Snape?”

Ginny, Neville, Luna, and Ezra look at each other sheepishly, knowing well that they hadn’t really thought about it. When planning, they were sure that they would succeed without getting caught, and when they did mention the Carrows, it was always to reaffirm that they were willing and ready to do it, no matter the consequences. The truth was that they probably hadn’t thought about said consequences in details. Or they had but they had ignored it, their youthful carelessness taking over.

“It’s Harry’s sword, Hagrid,” Ginny repeats, as if that argument was enough to move on.

“There’s other ways to support him, ya know?” Hagrid replies, putting his hand on her shoulder.

“Oh yeah?” Ginny snaps, pushing Hagrid’s hand away and starting to pace. Hagrid looks at her, more worried than offended, as she goes on. “Well, what are they, uh? We don’t know where he is or what he’s doing. He left us with _nothing_. Mr Moral Fibre left without saying anything, expecting us to just what? Wait around for him to be done with whatever his big plan is? Doesn’t he realize that while he… I don’t know, breaks into the Ministry and does Merlin knows what else, we’re _here_ , with the Carrows and Snape. _We_. All of us! You, me, the Order, our families, our friends... We’re all at the Death Eaters’ mercy. So yes, I’ll support him no matter what, but I’ll do it under _my_ terms. And my terms are that I don’t plan on waiting around in silence. I want to do something, I want to _hurt_ them and the sword was just the stepping stone. We’re not done yet, Hagrid. We’re barely starting.”

While she speaks, Neville and Ezra look at each other, taken aback by the intensity of her words and expression. Ezra feels bad for only noticing just now how angry and hurt Ginny seems. Last time he had seen Ginny and Harry together, they looked like every happy couple he knew, but that was before the battle and clearly, something went down since then. It isn’t hard to guess what. From context and her words, Ezra believes that Harry broke up with her in a, no doubt, chivalrous way in order to go after He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and that Ginny isn’t pleased with that.

“We know the Carrows aren’t Umbridge, Hagrid,” Neville jumps in, trying to calm things down. “But they’re Death Eaters and it isn’t our first time dealing with those either. And at the end of the day, we’re _Dumbledore’s_ Army. Not Harry’s. If we don’t defend the school against his murderer, then there’s no point.”

Ezra winces at the mention of Dumbledore, seeing it as a low blow. Anyone that knows Hagrid knows how much he loved and cared about Dumbledore. Hagrid, however, doesn’t seem hurt by the mention. He looks emotional, of course, but there is a new gleam in his eyes that lets them know that Neville’s words got to him more than anything else they could have said would have.

Hagrid wipes the tears that pool at his eyes and sighs. “Aight, kids, if ya’re sure… Now come on, let’s get to work.”

He turns around and walks deeper into the forest, Fang by his side, Neville, Ginny, Luna, and Ezra following close behind them.

*******

As she walks down the stairs, Lux can feel the stares and whispers that follow her but she tries to not let her discomfort show, holding her head high, like the confident assassin they all think she is.

The thought makes her smile.

When she reaches the dungeons, the corridors are empty. Her steps resonate and she has the strange sensation that she shouldn’t be here. She feels cold and ill-at-ease, the lack of light giving the whole place a gloomy atmosphere she can’t imagine living in. She doesn’t know how Sage and Kai do it.

“Lux?”

The voice that calls her is familiar and when she turns around, Lux has a small smile on her lips. _Thinking of the devil_.

“Kai, hey. Fancy meeting you here,” she jokes, wiggling her eyebrows, both to calm herself down and to see the type of mood Kai is in.

Kai frowns and looks around the corridors. “Not really,” he replies with a shrug.

Lux huffs out a laugh as she looks down and shakes her head. _Not in a fun mood, then_. “No. Not really, indeed” she replies, more to herself than to him. “What’s up?” she asks him with a nod, walking closer to him.

“What are you doing here?” he asks.

“Oh, haven’t you heard? I tried to murder Snape,” Lux says in a conversational tone. “Heading to my detention with him, as we speak. Maybe I’ll succeed this time,” she adds, thumbs up.

Kai sighs, visibly annoyed by the way Lux keeps deflecting. “Lux.”

“Sorry,” she says raising both hands. “I thought that was the latest rumour. What are they saying now?”

Kai shrugs again. “I don’t know. I heard lots of rumours, today. Most of them were completely insane, though.”

“Ah,” Lux says flatly, with a nod. “Rumours here usually are. For example, just yesterday, I was made aware that some people think that you have a thing for me,” she tells him with a wink and a nudge that’s just on the verge of obnoxious.

“They do?” Kai asks, one eyebrow raised as if that was the most offensive thing that could be said about him.

Lux cocks an eyebrow at him. “No need to react that way.”

“Sorry, sorry, I just… You know,” he says, tilting his head. “You’re not really my type.” The smile on his face - small, secretive, amused - takes Lux by surprised. This is the first time that Kai acknowledges so openly his relationship with Gabriel and the fact that Lux knows about it. It’s a very humbling thought.

“I guess not,” she replies softly, with a matching smile. She is touched by the fact that Kai seems so open with her now. They haven’t really spent time together nor even talked since they got back to Hogwarts so she’s surprisingly pleased that they still get along and that, perhaps, he trusts her.

“What really happened yesterday?”

Or maybe not… Lux’s smile falls and she stares at him, wondering if their shared secret was genuine or if he just tried to manipulate her into admitting something. Looking at him suspiciously, she asks back, “Why do you want to know?”

“I’m only looking after you, Astor,” he says. This time, he’s the one raising his hands in defense. “I feel like that’s my duty while we’re at school. You know, on behalf of my parents.”

Lux nods. “I see. Well, no need to worry about me. I’m fine. I only got a detention with Snape.”

“And that’s it?” Kai asks, not convinced.

Lux hums positively. “That’s it.”

“Okay…” Kai says slowly, eyebrows furrowed. “Well good luck, then.”

Lux nods and turns around, about to walk away when Kai calls out to her again. “Lux!”

“What?” she asks, turning back around with a sigh.

“Still… Be careful, alright?”

Lux cocks an eyebrow. “You scared of Snape, now?”

Kai shakes his head. “Not Snape, no.” The implied meaning doesn’t get lost on Lux. “I know you and your friends are behind the messages on the walls so be careful, alright?”

Lux smirks and starts walking backwards, “I told you, Kai. No need to worry about me.” She winks and turns around, making her way toward the detention room.

“Miss Astor,” Snape greets her sombrely when she gets there. “Please, come on in.”

Lux stares at him, ill-at-ease, as she walks past him and feels a knot form in her stomach when the door closes behind her.

“Please, sit,” he orders more than asks her, gesturing toward the empty chair in front of a desk. He sits on the other side of it and folds his hand in front of him, staring at Lux expectantly.

They are in what seems to be a storage room and Lux wonders if perhaps _Snape_ is going to kill her in the end.

“Your brother was a brilliant student,” Snape says out of the blue. Lux furrows her brows, practically glaring at him for daring to speak about Nyx. “A very perceptive and astute mind. He wasn’t careless like some of his peers. I guess that’s what made him such a gifted potion maker. I believe he would have made a great Slytherin, had he not fitted so well in Ravenclaw.” Lux keeps her eyes on him, practically not blinking lest she misses something on his face or in his eyes. A tremor, a gleam, anything that could tell her where he is going with this. “After he left Hogwarts, I ran into him a couple of times at different events and gatherings and I had the impression, from what he said, that he looked after you quite a lot. I was also recently informed that you had moved in with him before his tragic disappearance. Is that right?”

Lux doesn’t answer right away. She chews the inside of her cheeks, trying to decide what to say. Was that really why Snape had wanted her alone? To question her about Nyx? Maybe to try to get her to admit something?

She focuses hard on her thoughts then, trying to hide them from Snape, remembering that Harry had said he was a Legilimens.

“Yes, sir,” she eventually replies, voice cold, eyes dark.

Snape nods, looking lost in thought. “I see. And during all that time spent with you, Nyx never once taught you to think before acting.”

Lux is so taken aback that she forgets to glare at him. “Sir?”

“Your father, as I’m sure you’re aware, works for the Magical Secretary for Education. Have you ever thought about how your actions here may impact him, your mother, or the rest of your family? Openly defying the Ministry in such ways is a dangerous enterprise for anyone at this school. But it seems even more careless coming from someone like you, Astor. Have you, just once, thought about the consequences of your actions?”

Lux stares at Snape as if he wasn’t real. For a short moment, she wonders if this might not actually be a dream. Not for the first time, Lux is left with one question. _What game is Snape playing?_

“I want you to take this detention as both a lesson and a warning,” Snape goes on, standing up and going toward the shelves. Lux follows him, still trying to make sense of everything. “Since I’m the one who found you, I took upon myself to decide what type of punishment you should receive. I won’t be so kind next time. If I ever find you simply _near_ my office again, Astor, you will be sent straight to the Carrows and your fate will be in their hands. Is that clear?”

Lux stares at him, utterly confused, but nods. “Yes, sir.”

Snape gives her a firm nod then turns toward the shelves. “For today’s detention, I will need you to go through those archives to clear them out. Your good friend Potter has already taken care of those shelves,” he explains, gesturing toward a few aisles in the back, “but as he won’t be joining us this year, I need you to take over. These are the records of all the punishment given to Hogwarts students since it was built and the sentences each student received as punishment. Make sure that all the cards are clear to read. If the ink has faded or the parchment has been damaged, I want you to copy and complete the record on a new card. Once you’re done, you’ll class everything in alphabetical order. Understood?”

Lux nods and repeats, “Yes, sir.”

She grabs the box nearest to her and sits with it at the table in the back of the room, while Snape walks back toward the desk. The years written on it make her smile. _1985-1986_. Nyx’s fourth year at Hogwarts.

Of course, the record never mentions Nyx. Lux isn’t very surprised by that. In fact, she almost feels annoyed by it. Their parents have always been keen on reminding her how perfect Nyx was as both a son and student and the records seem to be mocking her, showing her that Nyx never did anything wrong, or at least was never caught doing anything wrong. _Oh, if only they knew_ … Lux thinks. The truth is, Nyx wasn’t the perfect student her parents or his teachers believed him to be. It’s just that he was good at hiding it. Selene and Bill have hundreds of stories that would probably make Pamela Astor faint from shame.

If the record doesn’t mention Nyx, it does, however, mention Valentina multiple times. In fact, it mentions Valentina more than any other students that year. Lux discovers, still without much surprise, that Valentina was probably the biggest gossip Hogwarts has ever known. All her mentions are related to a rumour she had spread, a secret she told the wrong people, or her incessant chatting in class. For a moment, Lux forgets she actually has some work to do and gets lost in the record.

It feels almost weird to read about Valentina when she was a teenager. Lux and her friends often wondered what it would have been like going to school with Valentina, Selene, and Nyx, and right now, the record is like a window, allowing her to get a glimpse of that time.

The detentions given to Valentina were usually lines to copy over and over again or closets to clean up with Filch. However, from her sixth year onward, the punishment changed and became the same one each time. _Sent to the headmaster’s office_. The detentions were more spaced as well but Valentina, it seems, always ended up going back to her old gossip habits and was systematically sent to Dumbledore. She was never suspended and Lux assumes it was because her offense wasn’t that severe but she finds it surprising that it still required Dumbledore’s intervention. In all of her years at Hogwarts, the only time she can recall a student being sent to Dumbledore’s office was in her second year when Harry was thought to be the heir of Slytherin. She can’t imagine what could be as bad as a twelve-year-old kid allegedly throwing a killing snake on his classmates.

In her four hours of detention, Lux manages to go through three boxes, her brother’s three last years at Hogwarts. She is closing the last one when Snape stands up and goes over to her.

“I think that will be enough for today. You can go to bed, now, Astor. I hope this is the last time i see you in detention. Remember what I told you. Next time you break a rule, I’ll let the Carrows deal with you. Understood?”

Lux stands up and nods quickly, eager to leave the dungeons. “Yes, sir.”

“And don’t take any detour!” Snape calls after her when she practically sprints out of the room.

*******

Upstairs, in her dorm, Lux tells Lavender, Parvati, Ginny, and Romilda, who both sneaked in when Ginny got back from her own detention, about her talk with Snape. Lavender and Parvati seem slightly curious while Ginny looks at her, confused.

“Snape warned you about the Carrows?”

Lux nods. “He gave me this whole speech about how great Nyx is and how I should be more careful. It was very weird. It was like, I don’t know, like he wanted me to trust him, or something…”

“He knows your brother is part of the Order, right?” Lavender offers. “Maybe he wants you to think he is still working for the Order?”

The girls all look at her, unconvinced. “Snape is a traitor but he isn’t stupid. No one is going to believe he is still good. He _killed_ Dumbledore. There’s no way the Order will take him back. And he works with the Carrows… Hard to imagine how that would work,” Ginny replies.

“I don’t know. Maybe he is a spy or something,” Lavender goes on, always one to see the best in people, even the worst one of them.

“Maybe before,” Parvati says, “but he still killed Dumbledore. Even for a spy, that’s hardcore. You don’t kill your boss for a mission… At least I don’t think so.”

“And the Order has spies,” Lux chimes in. “Kingsley, Tonks, and all the others that work for the Ministry. They were all some sort of spies. And I’m sure Gabriel had plenty to say about the Notts and their friends.”

“Maybe he wants someone else to trust him,” Romilda says then, speaking up for the first time since they got upstairs.

“What? Me? Snape wants me to trust him,” Lux asks, not convinced by this explanation either.

“Not necessarily, you”, Romilda replies, “but maybe McGonagall and the other teachers? If they see that Snape still ‘cares’,” she makes air quotes with her fingers, “about the students, they might be more likely to believe he is innocent.”

The girls look at each other and nod, accepting this explanation as a possibility.

“Maybe,” Ginny eventually admits. “I don’t think that would go over well, though, but that could be an idea. Snape managed to fool Dumbledore for years. He might think he can fool McGonagall now.”

“Maybe,” Lux repeats before being cut off by a yawn. “Either way, I don’t plan on stopping whatever we're doing with the DA. If anything, his little speech only made me want to kick them out even more.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaand that's it for chapter 14, as I said, chapter 15 is back with Gabriel and co, and focuses on a scene that was only mentioned in the books. I'm always very nervous when it comes to writing existing characters (this is why I never write fan fiction) and this next chapters features three so we'll see how it goes...  
> I also wanted to let you know that I started posting my prompts for whumptober, under the name Dumbledore is going down! I don't know how well I'll do with posting everyday (especially since I already missed yesterday) but we'll see! I won NaNoWriMo, I can do this :)


	15. November 19, 1997 - 164 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here comes chapter 15! This chapter features Gabriel, Anya, Nyx, and Selene, as well as three Harry Potter characters that I was very scared to write... I hope I did this scene justice.

It happens late at night.

Anya, Nyx, and Bill are already sleeping, while Gabriel, Selene, and Fleur are by the fire, talking softly about the latest updates they received from the Order. Arthur came to tell Bill that Ginny and her friends - Lux included - had been caught sneaking inside Snape’s office to try and steal Gryffindor’s sword. The news surprised them, to say the least, and it worried Nyx even more about his sister’s safety at Hogwarts. Both Bill and Selene tried to comfort him but it didn’t help much and he went to bed grumpy and stressed out of his mind.

“We need to find a way to give Lux a card,” Selene says with a sigh. “Nyx isn’t going to relax until he knows for sure that she’s alright.”

“We can always ask Bill to give one to Ginny for Lux when she comes back for Christmas,” Fleur offers, understanding Nyx’s worry. She can’t imagine how she would feel if she couldn’t contact Gabrielle.

“I understand why Nyx worries,” Gabriel replies. “We all worry about Lux and the others but we have to remember that they’re probably the safest of us all, right now. He needs to focus. If he loses it, that’s what’s going to get us caught.”

“You can’t blame him for worrying about Lux, Gabe,” Selene protests. “Sure they’re at Hogwarts, with McGonagall, Sprout, and the others, but they’re also with Snape and the Carrows. You can’t tell me that that doesn’t scare you a little.”

“Of course it does! But I can’t let it get to me. If we-” Gabriel stops mid-sentence when he is interrupted by a series of furious knocks on the door.

Gabriel and Selene look at Fleur and then, they are all up in a flash, wands ready. 

Fleur makes a shushing gesture at Gabriel and Selene, then heads toward the door, Gabriel and Selene staying hidden in the living room, barely breathing. They don’t move, hardly even allow themselves to blink, focusing on the sounds they hear coming from the hallway. They hear the sound of Fleur’s feet on the floor as she walks to the door, hear her open each lock carefully and finally hear gasp loudly when the door opens.

“ _ Ron? _ ”

Gabriel and Selene do a double-take, looking at each other, making sure the other heard it too, mouthing the name at each other.

“ _ Ron? _ ”

“ _ Weasley? _ ”

They can’t hear what the other person - Ron Weasley?! - is saying but they eventually hear Fleur talking again, her voice growing louder as she comes back to the living room. “Come on. Come in. Make yourself at home. I’ll go get Bill. _ ” _

Selene and Gabriel can only stare at him when Ron enters the living room. No one moves or says anything, as they hear Fleur rushing upstairs, to wake up Bill, Nyx, and Anya. It feels so weird to stand together in a room after all this time. It feels like it’s been ages since they last saw Ron and he is barely recognizable. He looks paler than usual and it seems that he has lost a lot of weight. He has dark circles under his eyes and a bit of stubble all along his jaw and chin. Gabriel is struck by how tired and  _ miserable  _ he looks and suddenly realizes that they probably looked the same when they got here themselves. 

“What are you doing here?” Ron eventually asks, a tad awkwardly, unable to look at them more than a few seconds at a time.

Gabriel looks at Selene who stares at Ron. “It’s a long story,” she simply says.

Ron chortles but it’s joyless. “Yeah, same here.”

Silence settles again and none of them seems to know what to say or do. They awkwardly stand in the middle of the living room, waiting for Fleur to come back with the others. It seems like an eternity, but it probably is just a few minutes before Bill, Fleur, Nyx, and Anya jog down the stairs and join them, wearing robes over their pajamas, still looking pretty out of it.

“Ron? Oh my god, Ron!” Bill exclaims when he sees his little brother, rushing toward him and hugging him close, while Nyx and Anya look very confused about what is going on. “We were so worried about you! What happened? Where are Harry and Hermione?” he asks when he notices that they aren’t here.

To everyone’s surprise, tears pool at Ron’s eyes when he pulls back from his brother’s embrace. He sits back down on the couch and takes his head between his hands.

“They’re fine, they’re both okay. I just…” Ron stops then, as if unable to voice his thought.

“You what?” Gabriel pushes.

“I left,” Ron mumbles.

“You what?” Selene asks, not sure she heard him correctly.

“I left!” Ron snaps, standing up again and starting to pace in the area between the kitchen and the living room. “We fought and I left. I… I left.”

The silence that follows Ron’s declaration is oppressing. No one dares to move or make any sound. They all look at him to avoid looking at each other while he keeps on pacing, head down. No one really knows what to say without upsetting him but eventually, silence seems to piss him off even more.

“Please say something,” he says, stopping and turning toward them. “I feel like you’re silently judging me and it’s making everything worse.”

They all look at Bill then, expecting him to say something. Nyx gives him a shrug.  _ It’s your brother after all _ .

Bill sighs and stands up, going to Ron. “Want to tell us what happened?”

Ron lets out a long sigh. “It’s complicated,” he eventually says, sitting on the arm of the chair. “I can’t really tell you what happened.”

“Just...” Fleur starts, before Gabriel can push him again, trying to comfort Ron and avoid an incident between the boys, “say what you can.”

“We were tired and frustrated,” Ron says carefully, clearly weighing each word before he says them. “We... Harry and I,” he explains, “We said stuff we didn’t mean and it escalated into something…” Ron sighs again and shakes his head a little. “I left. But as soon as I did, I cooled down and then I wanted to come back but I couldn’t find them because of their protection spells. That’s when those guys cornered me.”

“Those guys?” Bill repeats.

“Snatchers I assume?” Selene asks him. When Ron only looks at her confused, she adds, “They’re bounty hunters, basically. The Ministry is encouraging them to round up outlaws and muggle-borns in exchange for rewards. They even opened an entire office to deal with them.”

“I see…” Ron replies, understanding the situation better. “Well yeah, they probably were. They saw that I was young enough to still be in school so they cornered me, wanted to know who I was and what I was doing here. I pretended to be Stan Turnpike to distract them, then I disarmed them and ran away. They weren’t the brightest minds, I have to say.”

Gabriel wants to make a comment about  _ Ron’s _ mind but keeps his mouth shut, deciding his usual sass isn’t worth the trouble right now.

“There weren’t any muggle-borns with them?” Selene asks.

“No,” Ron replies. “At least I don’t think so? I didn’t see anyone else.”

Nyx nods. “What happened then?”

“I splinched myself,” he replies, showing them his two missing nails. “I was so desperate to get as far away from them as possible. I didn’t want them to catch me again.”

“Again?” Anya asks with a frown.

“Yeah. We almost got caught twice. First time was right after the wedding.” Ron tells them about how they got into the dinner and the Death Eaters followed them there, how they fought, and how Hermione erased their memories. “We still don’t know how they did it.”

“The Taboo,” Selene replies, slowly putting everything together. Whatever Harry, Ron, and Hermione were up to, they clearly weren’t paying attention to what was going on in the country. She wants to question about it but decides better of it. Like Gabriel, she’d rather avoid conflict with Ron for now. “Lee told us about it,” she goes on explaining instead. “They cast a spell on You-Know-Who’s name. When you say it out loud, it cancels all protection spells and makes you detectable. I assume Harry must have said his name.”

“Blimey,” Ron lets out, looking horrified. “They need to know! Harry says it constantly!”

“It’s going to be hard to do so since we can’t find them. But don’t worry,” Anya says with a small smile. “Katie works at the Snatchers office. She’s been warning us every time there was a snatchers attack. She’ll be able to tell us if they were to find Harry and Hermione.”

“Lee, Katie,” Ron starts counting, “Bill and Fleur… What have you guys been up to?”

Selene, Nyx, Gabriel, and Anya look at each other, a small smile on their lips. 

“A lot,” Anya replies. She tells him about what happened to them during the attack at the wedding and how they ran away. She briefly mentions Lux at the Alperts, and then she explains what they did, where they went. She tells him about the article in the  _ Daily Prophet  _ in case he missed it and, finally, she tells him about their meeting with Lee, Fred, and George, the radio that started just a few weeks prior, and their plan with Katie. “We’ve been trying to save as many muggle-borns as possible.”

Ron nods. “That’s good. I’m glad you guys are doing things for the war here.”

“Because you guys aren’t?” Gabriel replies, picking up on the bitterness in Ron’s voice, unable to stay quiet any longer.

Ron looks at him and something flashes behind his eyes again, and Gabriel is pretty sure it’s resentment, but, to his surprise, it isn’t toward him. 

It’s weird to not be the subject of Ron’s suspicions for once.

Gabriel was never really liked by the DA members but they tolerated him. By the end of the year, there was even some friendliness between them, but not Ron. Ron never liked Gabriel. Ron never  _ could _ . Gabriel is a Slytherin after all, and as he told Nyx, it comes with a certain reputation. Ron never managed to get over their House rivalries, sure that Gabriel would betray them at some point, despite Gabriel making it clear that Draco and him were not friends  _ at all _ . Lux always hated it more than him, obviously, and Julian often tried to ease things between his friends and Gabriel, but while it worked with Harry, Dean, Seamus, and Neville, Ron never let it go.

The Battle of the Astronomy Tower was, however, a game-changer for a lot of things, Ron and Gabriel’s relationship included. They weren’t friends still, nor even friendly with each other but there now was some kind of mutual respect between them and that was honestly good enough for Gabriel. If anything, the recent events seem to have settled that respect even more and it probably was that same respect that was stopping Gabriel from pushing Ron’s limits. 

“That’s…” Ron starts then shakes his head. “No. Of course not. We are... We were...  _ They  _ are.”

They all look at him suspiciously but no one tries to get more out of him. They know there’s no point to it.

“You guys heard about Ginny?” Ron says after a while, looking mostly at Bill.

“About her trying to steal Gryffindor’s sword?” When Ron nods, Bill goes on, “Yeah. Dad told us.”

“Is it true that they were sent to detention with Hagrid?” Ron asks him.

“Apparently yeah,” Bill replies.

“Why would Snape do that?” Ron asks, mostly looking at Gabriel.

“We don’t know,” Nyx replies this time, looking extremely stressed out once more. “We were all confused, especially because he gave Lux detention with  _ him _ ...”

“Really? Why?” Ron asks, now looking at Nyx, genuinely confused.

Anya and Selene share a look, and Gabriel sighs a little.

Nyx shrugs. “Dunno. Arthur told us that my parents think it’s because of their status, that Lux was above going with the gatekeeper in the forest but I doubt it. Snape never cared for this kind of stuff before. Besides, I don’t see him giving a Gryffindor a special treatment.”

“Maybe that’s what he was going for?” Ron offers. “He knew Lux would actually enjoy going with Hagrid so he punished her with him.”

“Yeah, but why send students with Hagrid at all?” Anya says. “I mean, it doesn’t make sense either way. Snape knows how much students love Hagrid. Especially those in the DA. So why send them to him? What is he trying to do? Win them over? As if they’re going to forget last year… Unless, maybe, he wanted to give them a false sense of safety.”

“What do you mean?” Ron asks with a frown.

Anya shrugs. “Snape knows who are the DA members left, right? I mean the main ones, those who fought the real battles. It’s safe to bet that they’re going to fight Snape and the Carrows if they haven’t started already, and I don’t mean just trying to steal that sword. I mean really disturbing Hogwarts under their direction. And the Carrows are in charge of the discipline at Hogwarts, now, apparently. I assume their sentences are going to be similar to Umbridge's if not worse. So perhaps Snape is trying to make them believe that the worst detention they can get is spending some quality time with him so that they don’t stop their fight against the Carrows. And the next time they get caught, the Carrows will take care of them.”

“Okay... but why single Lux out then?” Ron asks, making everyone wince and look at Nyx who just shakes his head, looking miserable. “Why send Ginny, Neville, Ezra, and Luna with Hagrid?”

“We don’t know,” Selene replies. “We hope we’ll get to find out more during the Christmas break.”

“Christmas!” Ron suddenly exclaims, a huge smile on his lips. “That’s right!”

Anya throws him a confused look. “You’re okay there?”

“Sorry,” he says, somewhat sheepishly. “I just… Kind of lost touch with time... “ He smiles a little, then a horrified expression crosses his face. “Merlin! Christmas!”

“Yeah, you’ve said that already,” Gabriel tells him, looking funnily at him.

“No, you don’t get it… They can’t find out!” Ron replies, still not making very much sense.

“What?” Bill asks worriedly. “Who can’t find out what?”

“Mom, Ginny, Fred, and George… Everyone! They can’t find out I left Harry and Hermione! They’ll kill me!” Ron replies urgently, standing up again.

“Ron, don’t be silly,” Selene tries to reassure him. “I’m sure your parents will be glad to see you.”

“At first, yeah,” Ron says, still looking terrified, managing to look even paler. “But once my mom and Ginny don’t see Harry and Hermione, they’ll know I’ve left them and they… They’ll kill me. And Fred and George… I’ll never hear the end of it. Bill, you can’t tell them I’m here.”

“I…” Bill starts but stops, looking at a loss as he glances sideways at Fleur.

“We’ll spend Christmas with you, Ron, don’t worry,” Fleur says then.

“We will?” Bill asks her.

“Yes, of course. I refuse to spend more time than necessary in company of your aunt. And we have Selene, Anya, Gabriel, and Nyx with us, anyway. It’s not like we can just invite them. It’s better if we all stay hidden here.”

“But Lux...” Nyx starts to argue.

“We wouldn’t be able to see her anyway, Nyx,” Gabriel tells him. “She’s either going to be with your parents or the Alperts. We can’t risk it.”

Nyx and Bill look at each other, both of them really wanting to see their little sisters but both also knowing that it wouldn’t be for the best.

Bill, still not looking too convinced, eventually nods. “Alright. We’ll spend Christmas here.”

Ron looks relieved and addresses a nod to his brother. “Thank you.”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing Ron was very scary because I've always related to him a lot and I don't know... if the characters aren't mine, I'm always scared to write them.  
> Next chapter will feature Julian, Valentina, and many Ministry characters!


	16. November 23, 1997 - 160 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiya everyone, just stopping by to drop the new chapter (for some reason I was sure we were further in the story but I guess this is what happens when you guys are at one point, my beta reader at another and me at yet another...) Anyway, this is a Julian and Valentina chapter, featuring some Kingsley and both (not so) well loved HP characters...

Julian tries not to think too hard about his life now. He goes through the motion and doesn’t question it. For a while, right at the beginning, he was sure he would never get used to all of this and that he would eventually come to resent Valentina. But now, months later, he is forced to realize that he actually got over it pretty quickly. It’s almost funny when he thinks about it. After he got his letter, he could hardly remember what it was like to be a muggle. Now, he can hardly remember what it was like to go to Hogwarts.

Julian believes that it’s due to the fact that he spends more time pretending to be Julien than actually being Julian. He talks with known Death Eaters and ambiguous Ministry members practically every day now that Valentina has a permanent office at the Ministry, as one of the government spokeswomen, and none of it is intimidating or scary anymore. It’s just his life.

He thinks that Valentina worries about him and perhaps regrets implicating him like that but she doesn’t say anything about it and Julian is fine with that. It’s too late for regrets now. She’s the one who pushed him to come with her and there’s no coming back from that. Besides, Julian actually likes working with her. He feels useful. It was always their dream - him and the DA - to work for the Order and Julian actually gets to do it now. That’s probably where his change of heart also came from; when he stopped complaining about not doing something for Hogwarts and his friends, and he realized he was an official - not so official - member of the Order of the Phoenix. That, and Kingsley.

Julian doesn’t think he will ever forget that time Kingsley barged in their home, sweating and bleeding, looking startled, completely out of breath. Valentina was quizzing Julian about all the facts they had managed to find about Beauxbâtons and the French magical government when someone started knocking violently on the door. Julian and Valentina looked at each other, worried, as barely anyone knew about this house. Valentina had left her Torquay house as soon as she had become a spy, and her official new address was an expensive flat in London she barely used. 

Their wands in hand, Julian went to hide in the closet while Valentina cracked the door open, gasping and opening it wide when she had realized it was Kingsley.

“I gave you a necklace for your last birthday,” he barely got out as a greeting, holding his ribs and wheezing. “It’s a small misshapen sapphire.”

“Merlin, Kingsley, what happened?” Valentina asked, ignoring his test, struggling to carry him to the couch. “Julian, a little help please?”

Julian rushed to them and helped her carry Kingsley to the nearest couch.

“I need the green and the white vials in the cabinet. The biggest ones,” she ordered him as she tore Kingsley’s shirt. “What happened?” she asked again.

“I’m compromised,” Kingsley winced back as Valentina started cataloguing his injuries. “They came for me in my office while I was updating your aunt. I don’t know how-”

“Did you say his name?” Julian asked urgently as he brought the vials to Valentina. He handed them to her and kneeled next to Kingsley’s head to keep him talking and conscious. “You-Know-Who’s?”

“I- Yes. Yes, I did… Why?”

Julian explained to him the Taboo spell cast upon He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named’s name as Valentina healed him. “They told us about it last night,” Julian added with a sigh. “It’s apparently the work of Reine Keita.”

“ _They_ told you about it?” Kingsley repeated.

Valentina nodded as she pressed Kingsley’s shirt over his wound. “They can be forward now that they think I’m one of them.”

Kingsley looked at Valentina through hooded eyes, his gaze full of sympathy and guilt. “So it happened, uh?”

“They tried to recruit her, yes,” Julian replied, slightly confused by the way Kingsley said that.

“And you…” Kingsley trailed off, apparently not needing to finish his thought for Valentina to understand him.

She nodded, communicating with Kingsley more with her eyes than with her words. “I did.”

Julian looked between then, completely lost.

He had no idea what had really happened between the Death Eaters and Valentina in the end. One day they were sure they were about to recruit her, then she had gone to talk to them by herself, and the next time Julian saw them they were talking about “The Dark Lord” over dinner as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Julian had been even more confused when afterwards, Valentina had shown him that she didn’t have the dark mark on her arm and that she wasn’t a Death Eater.

“Guess I found a way to tell them no,” she had tried to joke when Julian had asked her but he knew she was hiding something and the idea didn’t sit right with him.

Their relationship is better than a few months ago but because of the blatant lies she tells him, Julian still doesn’t fully trust Valentina. Kingsley’s presence does help a lot, however. He lives with them, now. Fully recovered, he stays in touch with the Order as much as he can and Julian is relieved to learn that Selene, Nyx, Anya, and Gabriel are safe and staying with Bill and Fleur. He, of course, asks if he can see them but both Valentina and Kingsley agree that it isn’t a good idea so it doesn’t happen. Kingsley tells him that he is too deep undercover to risk seeing them. In the meantime, Kingsley reassures him that everyone is okay and doesn’t mention either Julian or Valentina to the rest of the Order.

Julian still doesn’t get it. In his opinion, what the Order needs right now is to regroup so that its members don’t feel so alone. He is ready to bet that most of them would be delighted to hear that they have people on the inside working for them… Kingsley, however, keeps repeating that it’s too dangerous for now.

So in the meantime, Valentina and Julian keep spying on the Ministry and the Death Eaters and Julian try not to be too annoying. Right now, they are heading to a Ministry party taking place inside the Artemisia Lufkin Ballroom.

“The Ministry has a ballroom?” Julian asks as they walk through the corridors.

“Yes, Julien, the Ministry has a ballroom. Now keep walking we’re going to be late,” Valentina replies, holding the shawl over her shoulder tightly, her heels resonating in the empty corridor.

They’re dressed to the nines, Julien wearing a nice, fitted dark grey suit, and Valentina wearing a dark blue dress that flows behind her as they hurry toward the ballroom. Guarding the doors are four people, dressed in discreet black robes, looking quite stern. A few guests linger outside of the room, catching up with old friends or chatting with colleagues about their work before they join the party. As soon as they arrive, the chatter stops and everyone looks at Valentina in quiet reverence. It reminds Julian a bit of the first time he met her, how starstruck he was by her despite having no idea who she was just a few months prior. It isn’t her fame or her talent that inspire this kind of reaction but rather her presence. Valentina never really has to ask for attention, she just… receives it.

While Julian is extremely aware of the eyes following them, Valentina ignores them entirely. She walks regally toward one of the guards and presents her wand to him.

“Valentina Weger,” she introduces herself coldly. Julian will always be mesmerized by the easiness with which she switches between herself and what he calls her Ministry persona.

The guard nods, looking a little intimidated. “Yes, of course, miss Weger.” She grabs Valentina’s to check it then hands it back to her with a small bow.

Julian looks at the girl in sympathy. She looks young and he can’t imagine what it must be like to join the Ministry as it is now, right after Hogwarts. When he goes to her, however, his mouth falls open as he finds himself staring back at none other than Katie Bell, his former housemate.

“Can I have your wand, sir?” Katie asks him, giving him a strange look as he continues to gape at her in shock.

“Oh, uh, yes, sure,” he replies shakily, practically shoving his wand in her hand. 

She checks it, the reader giving her the forged wand certificate Kingsley made after their first mishap, then gives the wand back to Julian, still looking at him suspiciously.

“Thanks,” Julian tells her, then clumsily joins Valentina behind the security cordon. 

Valentina shakes her head disdainfully at him and enters the ballroom, Julian sheepishly following her.

The ballroom is ridiculous. It’s huge and looks straight out of the 1920s. The ceiling seems to be under a spell given how high it is, and a gigantic chandelier hangs from it. On the buffets, food and drinks never stop coming; as soon as someone takes something, it is just as quickly replaced. There are several tables all around the dance floor, which is currently occupied by the guests chatting animatedly over a glass of champagne. In the back of the room, there’s a stage with a mic stand. From the pit underneath it, Julian can vaguely hear music coming out and he guesses there are musicians there.

“So that’s the Ministry ballroom?” Julian asks, leaning toward Valentina.

“Yup,” she replies, popping her p. “Alright, be good, okay? I’ll be right back.”

“Where are you going?” Julian asks. He might have gotten used to all of this, he still isn’t very comfortable when Valentina leaves him alone among hundreds of Ministry employees and Deaths Eaters.

“I have to talk to the musicians. Don’t worry, I’ll be quick.”

In the end, Valentina is gone for half an hour. While he waits, Julian makes his way to the buffet, because the more he has food in his mouth, the less people will come to talk to him. He looks at the other guests and notices several familiar faces like Yaxley, and the Notts. He also catches a glimpse of Arthur Weasley. He has to look at him several times before he is sure it is really him, surprised to see that he would risk being in such companies. Then again, he realizes that it would be more suspicious if he didn’t attend events organized by his employers. The Minister is there as well, talking with Umbridge, Lux’s father, and what Julian assumes to be other higher-ups.

“Ugh, my aunt is here,” Valentina groans next to Julian’s ear, making him startles.

“Jesus, Val, you scared me.”

“Sorry,” she says, sounding anything but. “Anything interesting?”

“Arthur Weasley is here, which I found- Wait. Your aunt, you said?”

Julian stops and stares at Valentina, completely dumbstruck. Valentina never talks about her family. She used to brag about her huge family that still lives in Switzerland all the time before the fallout but since then, Julian has never heard her mention anyone that wasn’t either a Death Eater, a Ministry employee or Kingsley. In fact, the only time he heard about Valentina’s family since he moved in with her was when Kingsley mentioned he had talked to her aunt, perhaps the same aunt that was apparently here, tonight.

Valentina seems to realize she let something slip because she nods briefly then buries her face in her wine glass. 

“Is that the aunt Kin- _he_ talked about the other day?”

“I…” Valentina starts but then stops, shaking her head. “We’ll talk about this later, alright? Right now isn’t the time. Please make sure she doesn’t come near us, alright?”

“I don’t even know who she is!” Julian retorts, trying to look where Valentina was looking when she mentioned her aunt.

“Small, plump woman talking with the Minister. And make sure her husband stays far, as well. Tall, attractive man, that looks bored out of his mind.”

Julian spots them right away, among Umbridge, Charles Astor, Vinicius Nott, Reine Keita, and Pius Thicknesse. He is so busy making sure they aren’t looking in their direction that he doesn’t realize Umbridge detaching herself from the group and walking toward them.

“Valentina!” Umbridge exclaims, paying no attention to Julian. “A pleasure to see you, as always,” she says, sounding rather truthful, kissing Valentina’s cheek _à la française_.

“Dolores, hi! Good evening!” Valentina replies as they pull back. “I don’t think you’ve met my new assistant yet. This is Julien Belfort, from France.”

“Pleased to meet you, young man,” Umbridge tells Julian, shaking his hand, a forced smile on her lips.

“Likewise, ma’am,” Julian replies, his throat dry. Being so close to her after so long makes him want to scream and vomit, not necessarily in that order.

“Brrr,” Umbridge says, pretending to have chills. “I just talked to Charles Astor and the Notts. Poor souls. Their sons are still nowhere to be found.”

“Still no sign of their attackers?” Valentina asks, faking casual curiosity.

Umbridge shakes her head, looking disappointed. “Unfortunately no. Although…” she trails off, making sure no one else is paying attention to them. “This stays between you and me, right?”

“Of course, Dolores,” Valentina replies, leaning forward.

“We’ve had snatchers catching up on them several times. They aren’t aware of the Taboo, we assume, or they used it to lead our team of snatchers into traps. Something tells me it won’t be too long until we arrest them. The snatchers we send now are highly trained and way more prepared. This whole ordeal will soon be over, believe me.”

“Let’s hope so,” Valentina says with a nod, her eyes saying otherwise.

“You were in school with one of them, right, Valentina?”

Valentina looks briefly at Julian then nods. “Er, yeah, I was.”

“Do you know her well?” Umbridge asks, her toad eyes practically scanning Valentina’s face for the slightest reaction.

“Not really,” Valentina replies easily. She shrugs before adding, “We stayed in touch after Hogwarts but we quickly realized we didn’t share the same beliefs and values,” she explains, gesturing around the room.

Her answer seems to please Umbridge who gives her a smile full of teeth. “Of course you did, dear. Well, don’t worry. They won’t roam free for much longer. I’ll invite you to their trial!” Umbridge says gleefully, and with that, she practically hops away to the next group of guests she wants to greet.

Julian stares at Valentina as she downs her drinks.

“A friend of yours?” Julian asks her, one of his eyebrows cocked. 

“I do what I have to do,” Valentina replies harshly, grabbing a new glass and taking longs gulps of it.

Julian stares at her but says nothing, noticing the bitterness in her voice and feeling a little pang of guilt in his chest. To quiet it, Julian turns back toward the buffet and swallows canapé after canapé. He has his mouth full when he sees two figures walking toward them and chokes a little when he realizes who they are.

“What’s up with you?” Valentina asks him lowly.

“Those two, they were there last year, on top of the tower.”

Valentina looks up and nods. “Yeah, that’s the Carrows.”

“They’re the new teachers?” Julian asks, looking shocked.

“Yeah,” Valentina replies, eyebrows drawn together. “I told you the two new teachers were Death Eaters.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t think it meant they were- Hey there, you two,” Julian cuts himself off awkwardly, making finger guns at the Carrows as they stop in front of them.

Alecto and Amycus look at him weirdly before turning toward Valentina.

“Good evening, Miss Weger,” Amycus says, kissing the back of Valentina’s hand. “Is this individual bothering you?

“Amycus, Alecto,” Valentina replies, smiling at the both of them. “I apologize for my assistant behavior,” she explains through gritted teeth, glaring briefly at Julian. “He’s from France, you see, and he still hasn’t adapted well to the British magical community.”

“I see…” Amycus says slowly, his eyes boring into Julian’s as if he could read his mind.

“Anyway!” Valentina says more loudly than necessary, “I didn’t think I’d see you two, tonight. You must be quite busy with Hogwarts and everything.”

“Well tonight is an important night for us, we had to be there,” Alecto replies. “They’ve asked us to talk about the situation to Hogwarts.”

“And how is the situation at Hogwarts?” Julian chimes in, trying to sound as casual as possible.

“Pretty good,” Amycus replies, looking satisfied, not really paying attention to Julian but always glad to brag. “Most students got used to the new system quickly enough.”

“We do have troubles with a group of students,” Alecto adds, frowning at her brother when he starts coughing. “What? It’s no secret. They call themselves Dumbledore’s Army,” she explains to Julian and Valentina. “They’ve been painting messages all over the school. We didn’t know who they were until the ring leaders got caught sneaking into Severus’s office.”

“I’m sorry, they did what now?” Julian asks, blinking quickly, not sure he heard that correctly.

“They sneaked into the Headmaster office,” Amycus replies, talking as if Julian was an idiot. “Tried to steal Gryffindor’s sword.”

Julian’s eyes are blown wide, his eyebrows raised as high as they can be. “And why would they do that?”

Alecto shrugs. “No clue. Severus said he took care of it. He was a bit soft on them if you ask me but he promised we would take care of all the other detentions from now on so I’m sure we’ll get to fix that.”

“What did he do to them?” Valentina asks.

“He sent them to the Forbidden Forest,” Alecto replies. “And he kept one of them with him I think.”

“To do what?” Julian asks, the fear on his face getting clearer and clearer.

“I don’t know,” Alecto tells him. “Probably to scare her off or something? Maybe he wanted to get her alone to make her talk.”

“Her?” Julian goes on asking, ignoring Valentina’s warning looks.

“Yeah, it was the Astor girl.”

Julian closes his eyes, feeling as if a stone had dropped inside his chest. “What about the others? Who were they?”

“What’s with all the questions, mate?” Amycus asks coldly.

“Excuse him,” Valentina jumps in, glaring at Julian before smiling at the Carrow siblings. “Again, he’s from France and still learning. I told him about Potter and his little gang so I guess he’s curious.”

Amycus doesn’t look too convinced but nods. “Okay. Well, the other kids were the Weasley girl, the Longbottom kid,” he says with a smirk, “an American kid, and that loony girl.”

“Xenophilius Lovegood’s daughter?” Valentina asks, remembering what Julian had told her about the DA.

“Yup, that’s her,” Alecto replies. “We’re keeping an extra close eye on her. Vinicius and Corban told us that the articles were starting to bother them so we’ll see if we find a creative way to make them stop.”

Julian goes to say something but Valentina seems to have had enough. She subtly stumps on his foot and smiles at the Carrows. “I’m sure you’ll find something.”

They keep on chatting for a few minutes then the Carrows excuse themselves. When they’re gone, Julian goes to say something but Valentina stumps on his foot again.

“Ouch!”

“For Merlin’s sake, Julien! What the fuck was that?” she whispers shouts at him.

“I-” Julian starts answering but Valentina makes a “shut up” gesture with her hand.

“Later.”

***

Julian finds himself alone again later that evening. Valentina is now on stage, singing for the guests after Umbridge gave a triumphant speech about the success of the anti-muggle-borns decrees. Julian listened, horrified, as people cheered around him and Umbridge smiled like a blood-thirsty shark. What did raise his spirits a little, however, was to see that, despite the loud cheers and applause, a few faces seemed to bear the same expression as his. Arthur Weasley was nowhere to be seen but his older son and Julian’s former prefect, Percy, looked rather sick. Other people he didn’t know clapped for good measure but didn’t seem too pleased with the government’s new direction.

Julian is back at the buffet now, eating dessert, still following the same plan as before. _The more food in my mouth…_

“You’re Valentina Weger’s assistant, right?”

Julian startles a little when he hears the voice next to him. He then wonders why he thought people would leave him alone if they saw him eating.

Slowly swallowing the piece of cheesecake he was eating, Julian turns around to face a man he has never seen before.

“I am,” Julian confirms, wondering when he became so well-known. Then again, he supposes that Valentina being the superstar she is among these people, he was bound to attract attention, being associated with her. “Who’s asking?” he adds then, trying to take on the same cold, bored air Valentina always sports when she talks to people at the Ministry.

“Oh, Alexandre Marat, sir,” the man says.

Julian first hears the slight tremor in his voice and the nervous “sir” Alexandre adds at the end of his sentence and is startled by it. He usually is ignored by people at this kind of events and when they do acknowledge him, it’s never with much respect or interest. This is a rather nice but surprising change until Julian realizes that Alexandre looks pretty young, not more than twenty years old, and Julian - under polyjuice - looks almost thirty. 

The second thing he notices, this time with horror rather than pleasing surprise, is the fact that Alexandre sounds very _very_ french.

Julian shakes his hand because he has no idea what else to do. It is quite clear that Alexandre wants to talk to him and it would be rude of Julian to dismiss him without another word. Rude and weird. He can’t really start a conversation either because this is the first time he is confronted with someone supposed to be from the same community as him and he _can’t_ mess it up. It would ruin everything.

So Julian shakes his hand and decides to wait and see.

“I’m sorry for bothering you, sir,” Alexandre goes on after a while, when it is clear to him that Julian won’t say anything. “I just… I’m a huge fan of Valentina.”

“Oh,” Julian lets out, trying to sound not too relieved. Nervous fan; he can deal with that. “It’s alright. I get it. She’s amazing.”

“She really is, uh?” Alexandre replies, eyes shining in admiration as Valentina sings a slow ballad on stage. “I mean that voice and those eyes, she’s just so… Oh, I mean… I don’t… I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to...” Alexandre suddenly starts stuttering and Julian frowns in confusion, not understanding why he is apologizing to him. Then, it dawns on him.

“Oh no. No, no. Valentina and I aren’t together,” Julian replies, shocked by the idea that people may think he and Valentina are dating. Then he remembers once more what he looks like under polyjuice and wants to shake himself for constantly forgetting his character. 

“Oh, okay. I’m sorry, I didn’t want to assume but I didn’t want to offend you either,” Alexandre replies, looking embarrassed. “I’m a big big fan of hers. Actually, I wanted to ask you…” Alexandre goes on, his voice getting lower as he leans toward Julian.

Julian unconsciously takes a step back, looking around the room, not sure what is going on. Was Alexandre about to proposition Valentina _via_ him? Did he think he was his handler or something? Did he think this was the kinds of service Valentina offered? Did _Valentina_ offer these kinds of service and didn’t warn Julian?

Julian mentally shakes his head, ashamed of having such thoughts.

“Is it true what they say about her?” Alexandre asks and Julian feels something drop in his stomach. _Oh no… He_ is _propositioning Valentina_.

“I’m not sure I see what you mean,” Julian replies, trying not to sound too harsh, ready to defend Valentina’s honour.

“Her family,” Alexandre replies and Julian is at first too relieved to be confused.

“Oh, that? Yeah, I…” he trails off before asking, “Wait, her family?”

Without a second thought, Julian quickly search for the couple Valentina showed to him but, thankfully, they’re both busy talking with a group of old men. He looks back toward Alexandre who has leaned even closer to him now.

“Yeah. Is it true what they say about her ancestors?”

Julian clears his throat, both uncomfortable with Alexandre’s closeness and the fact that this is the third time Valentina’s family is brought up as this huge thing in front of him and he has no idea what’s going on. He looks around before saying, “I’m not sure…”

Alexandre nods solemnly then, taking Julian’s confusion for a sign of discretion. “I understand. We’re not supposed to talk about it. I just heard two men talking about it and I was wondering… But no, yes, of course. People aren’t ready yet. We’re making progress but it is too soon to reveal such things. And even then, people might feel threatened. With such genealogy, Miss Weger has every right to claim one of the highest ranks in the new order.”

Julian can only stare at Alexandre when he is done, completely frozen in his confusion. There’s a manic gleam in his eyes and Julian has to admit it’s kind of freaking him out. 

“Well, thank you for your time, sir,” Alexandre says with the tiniest of bows and then he is gone, leaving Julian very confused in front of the buffet.

***

Julian is quiet for the rest of the evening. When they get home, Valentina does most of the talking anyway, telling Kingsley about their talk with Umbridge, then her speech, and the other things she’s heard. She mentions Arthur as well, and it isn’t until she mentions her aunt that Julian perks up.

“My aunt was there too. With my uncle. I assume they saw me, obviously, because I was on stage, but they didn’t come near me.”

“That reminds me!” Julian exclaims as he sits up. “I spoke to a man.”

“A man?” Kingsley repeats slowly, prompting Julian to give them more info.

“A French man. Alexandre… Marat I think?”

Kingsley and Valentina look at each other then both shake their heads.

“Never heard of him.”

“Doesn’t ring a bell.”

“He was a big fan of yours, Val,” Julian adds. “I thought he was a random fan at first but then he started saying things…”

“What things?” Kingsley asks him, looking frightened, his mind probably following the same train of thought Julian’s had at the time.

“He made it sound like Valentina was, I don’t know, Death Eater royalty or something.” He says this as a joke but Kingsley’s and Valentina’s reaction makes him think he actually got it right.

Kingsley looks at Valentina while she visibly tenses up, looking down, clenching her jaw.

“Alright, what’s going on?” Julian asks, looking at them suspiciously.

Kingsley and Valentina, however, pay him no attention.

“They said they wouldn’t say anything,” Valentina mumbles as she starts to pace.

“Why wouldn’t they? It makes you even more respected and trustworthy,” Kingsley replies, sitting up on the couch and leaning forward.

“Does it, though? It makes me stand out. It’s a competitive world. I’m going to be the girl who showed up out of nowhere and who feels entitled to higher privileges because of my name. How are they going to react when they notice that I don’t have the dark mark?”

“Not everyone has it. Only his lieutenant. People will trust you more, you’ll get to hear more about their plans.”

“Or it could attract You-Know-Who’s attention. And what do we do then?”

When he hears them talking about He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Name, Julian can’t hold it anymore. “Wait what?” he lets out, frustrated to be ignored and feeling like there’s something very important they aren’t telling him.

Kingsley finally looks at Julian but he doesn’t say anything and turns back to Valentina. “Perhaps you should tell him.”

“He barely trusts me already. You think that’s going to help?”

“It’ll get worse if you don’t. If you don’t tell him, he’s going to imagine things.”

“Nothing as bad as the truth…”

“Oi!” Julian yells out, understanding that it’s _him_ they’re talking bout. “I’m right here. Can you… not do that, please?”

Valentina lays her eyes on him and her gaze is so intense that Julian looks down.

“Julian,” she says, and for some reason, Julian feels the need to stand up. “This is important, more important than anything else I’ve told you so far. Can I trust you?”

“Of course,” he replies without thinking, tired of being left out. From the moment he had joined her, he thought that he would get to be in on every secret, not that they would keep treating him as a useless kid.

“Me trusting you implies you trusting me,” Valentina replies. “Trust only works both ways. Do you understand?”

“I do,” Julian replies, trying to not be as whiny as he feels, actually believing it this time. “I trust you.”

Valentina looks touched and Julian feels a pang of guilt for holding it out against her for so long. He knew Valentina was trying too hard to build back their relationship but he was so angry at her that he didn’t even notice how petty that grudge was and how much efforts she was making to make him forgive her.

Valentina looks at Kingsley as if asking for his approbation and Kingsley shrugs, as if to say, _up to you_. Valentina looks back at Julian and nods once.

“Alright, sit down. I’m going to tell you exactly why Dumbledore asked _me_ to become his spy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TIN TIN TIIIIIIIN
> 
> I have no idea if the cliff hanger and all the mystery around Valentina is working (maybe I should ask my beta reader) but here you go... See you next week :)  
> Next chapter we're back with Lux and co (of course) and we'll see a bit more of Ezra!


	17. December 4, 1997 - 149 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm posting these chapters way faster than I'm writing them so let's hope I'm not going to run out of them (for now I have 4 more ready to go, and 4 others on stand-by, awaiting editing.)  
> This chapter, we're back with Lux and Ezra and we also have Neville and McGonagall.

Dumbledore’s Army gains, or rather regains, a few members after their stunt inside Snape’s office. The day after their detentions, Terry goes to see Neville and Ginny to tell them that Michael Corner and Anthony Goldstein both want to join back and soon enough, all the old members, aside from Zacharias Smith and Nova, are back. New ones join them as well and suddenly it feels like they are too many to count. 

The chore group is delighted to see how popular their movement has become and is proud to see how Neville thrives as their new, unofficial leader. For a while, he refuses to accept this title, claiming that Harry is the true leader of the DA, but Ginny and Lux ignore his remark and keep on treating him as such. It is Hannah, in the end, who bitterly closes the debate once and for all.

“He never cared for the DA the way you do, Neville.  _ You’re _ our leader.”

Neville blushes and stutters, trying to defend Harry, but after that, he never denies again that he is in charge.

They keep going unbothered for a couple of weeks after the failed heist until the first detention finally falls. It happens a couple of weeks before the Christmas break, during a Muggle Studies class. Lux is sitting next to Ezra, Neville next to Seamus, and they are all listening as Alecto Carrow goes on and on about the superiority of pureblood wizards.

“It is a fact, after all, that magic is stronger when the blood has remained pure for generations. That was actually one of the starter point of the recent discovery made by the Department of Mysteries. It was proven that those of muggle blood have less magic in their blood than pureblood wizards and of course, muggle thieves have shown signs of weak and unstable magic powers, as it isn’t theirs. Since they stole that magic from another wizard - wizards commonly known as squibs - they are unable to control it. What the registration Commission does, really, is help those thieves to come out and repent so that we, the true wizards, can help them recover. Indeed, unstable powers are a very dangerous thing to have, as the whole wizarding world remembers from the massive research lead by Gellert Grindelwald on Obscurials. I believe you will be studying this topic in further details with my brother soon but what you need to know now is that muggle thieves can’t handle magic because their bodies just aren’t  _ made  _ to handle it. In the end, stolen magic will end up killing them.”

Keeping a neutral face, Lux raises her hand. Ezra looks at her and frowns.

“Astor. Yes? You have a question?”

“How do you explain that the best student of our class is a muggle-born?” Lux asks, keeping her voice casual, pretending as best as she can that this is a normal student-teacher conversation.

The students in the class all hold their breath as Alecto stares down at Lux. “I beg your pardon?” she asks her, smiling softly. The smile is forced and there is a manic gleam behind her eyes but they both try hard to keep up the appearance. “I don’t think I understand what you mean.”

“Hermione Granger,” Lux replies, a small smirk pulling at her lips. “She is the best student of this class, if not this school. And she is a muggle-born.”

“Hermione Granger,” Alecto replies through gritted teeth, doing all she can to stay calm, “is a thief and a criminal. The results she may have had here are due to the fact that she stole her powers from a very good wizard. Something tells me that these powers will end up killing her rather sooner than later. And if not, well, the snatchers will take care of it either way. What little power she may have won’t hold against them. Believe me,” she concludes, turning around to go back to the board.

The class relaxes a little, thinking that they are done but Lux jumps right back in, still maintaining an innocent expression on her face.

“But Hermione Granger already defeated your side. Twice.”

Alecto visibly balls up her fists, but when she turns around, she still looks composed. “Again, I’m not sure I understand what you are saying, Astor.”

“Hermione fought against your side. Twice,” Lux repeats. “And she beat you. Twice.”

“But there are no sides, dear,” Alecto replies softly, looking a lot like Umbridge at that moment. “We are all on the same side. The side of the law. Those against me, are against you too.”

“Oh really? I thought there were two sides, the Order of the Phoenix and the Death Eaters.”

“Lux!” Ezra whispers next to her, sounding nervous. Lux ignores him, unable to take her eyes off of her professor.

The silence in the classroom is deafening as Alecto glares in silence at Lux, having not expected to be challenged like that. All eyes are on Lux and her as she hisses, “ _ Excuse me _ ?”

Lux doesn’t back down, despite the flames practically coming out of Alecto’s eyes. “I said,” she enunciates slowly, her eyes never leaving her professor, “I thought there were two sides. Or at least, there were two sides last year, when we all fought on top of the Astronomy Tower and your friend killed Dumbledore.”

“Harry Potter killed Dumbledore,” Alecto replies coldly, no longer able to hide her anger.

“Snape killed Dumbledore and you’re framing Harry because you’re a Death Eater.”

Alecto’s reaction is immediate. She raises her hand and smacks Lux hard in the face, the noise even louder in the dead silent classroom. The class gasps, Ezra raising a little from his seat.

“I won’t hear another word from your mouth, girl. Understood?”

Lux stares at her, tears in her eyes, her hand resting over her throbbing cheek. She can feel more than see Ezra next to her, his hand on his wand, ready to strike, and hopes he doesn’t do anything stupid. Biting her lips, Lux glares at Alecto before replying, “Yes.”

Alecto smirks and takes a hold of Lux’s throat, forcing her to look up. “Yes. Ma’am.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Lux repeats quickly, struggling to breathe, her head raised at an awkward angle, her eyes blown wide in shock.

Alecto leans closer to her face and traces it with one of her fingers. “Do not forget who is in charge here. You might be an Astor but it won’t stop me from punishing you if need be. Got it?”

Lux can’t really reply, the hold of Alecto on her throat getting tighter.

“Let her go!” Neville calls out but Alecto doesn’t pay attention to him. She is staring at Lux, a cruel smile twisting her lips, as Lux chokes. Neville stands up then and pushes her away from Lux, Lux falling back on her desk and coughing loudly. Ezra bends over her to check if she is alright while Neville stands next to their desk and looks at Alecto Carrow in horror as he realizes what he just did.

“One hundred points off Gryffindor,” Alecto says coldly as she stands up. “You two, with me. Right now. You,” she goes on, pointing at Nova, who startles at being addressed. “Keep the class in line while I’m gone.” 

Nova nods and doesn’t look even once at Lux, Neville, and Ezra when she passes in front of them.

Ezra stands up when he sees Alecto coming toward them. “Hey,” he says, “where are you taking them?”

Alecto points her wand at him right away, her patience having visibly reached its limits. “Sit down, boy, or I’m taking you with them.”

Lux pleads Ezra with her eyes and he recoils, letting Alecto take Lux and Neville away, and sitting back down. Alecto grabs them by their wrists and practically drags them away, leaving behind her a stunned classroom. Lux and Neville follow her gingerly, too terrified to say anything.

“Sit,” she instructs them when they get to the disciplinary office, one floor below.

They obey and don’t even dare to look at her or at each other while they wait.

Alecto takes their wands and puts her own to her throat. “Filch. In here. Now.” She then turns to Lux and Neville and says, “I’m giving you one week of detention. You do not talk like that to someone of my rank and status, understood? And you, rat face,” she adds, looking at Neville. “If you lay another hand on me, I’ll cut it off.” 

Lux and Neville don’t say anything just stare at her in horror. Filch appears, sweating and out of breath, a few minutes later.

“You wanted to see me?”

Alecto nods. “Remember what we talked about regarding the new detention system?”

Filch’s face lights up as he nods. “Of course.”

“Well, these two will be the first. Please take them,” she says without looking up, as she fills what seems to be a form.

This time, Lux and Neville do look at each other, terrified by the prospect of what is about to happen to them.

“You kids are in for a treat,” Filch says with a smirk, grabbing their arms and leading them downstairs.

“Where are you taking us?” Neville asks, his voice shaky.

“Oh, you’ll see,” Filch replies, gleefully.

They go down several floors and Neville and Lux both realize at the same where they are going when they go deeper than the Slytherin Common Room.

“You’re taking us to the dungeons,” Lux says and it isn’t a question.

“I am indeed, Astor.”

Lux looks at Neville who stares at nothing in particular, eyes blown wide, and his skin already going pale.

When they get there, Filch throws them in one of the cells. He pushes Lux against the wall and forces her to sit down, closing the shackles around her wrists and neck, then does the same with Neville. The dungeons are dark, the only light coming from the torches outside the cells. The atmosphere is humid, and Lux is sure she can hear rats running next to them. It will be a miracle if they don’t catch any disease before they come out. 

“We’ll have an elf bring you food,” he spits. “Don’t do anything stupid while you’re here. See you in a week.” And with that, he is gone.

“I’m sorry, Neville,” Lux says once she is sure they’re alone.

“You’re kidding, right?” Neville replies. “She was strangling you. I wasn’t gonna let her kill you.”

Lux tries to turn her head but the shackles around her neck prevents her from doing so. It’s weird talking like that, side by side, unable to look at each other both because of the shackles and the lack of light. 

“She wouldn’t have killed me,” Lux replies, sounding as if she is trying to convince both Neville and herself. “And of course, it’s my fault, I knew it would piss her off if I said that and I still did it. I provoked her and now you’re here...” Lux feels extremely guilty. She was careless. She knew what the Carrows were capable off and yet, she still provoked her because she was angry. That anger is dangerous. She hates to admit it but Snape and her friends are right. She is being careless and she has no safety net. Just herself and the DA. “I can’t believe this is legal,” she eventually says after a while, shaking the shackles a little so that Neville would know what she is talking about.

“With You-Know-Who in charge, pretty much everything is legal now. I’m surprised she didn't straight up cruccio us in front of everyone.”

“I really thought she would,” Lux admits. She pauses then says, more seriously, “Neville, do you think we should stop?”

“Stop what?” Neville replies, sounding confused.

“The DA. Do you think we’re being too reckless?”

Neville is quiet for a while and Lux bites her lips in anticipation, starting to think her question offended him. When, after almost a minute, he doesn’t say anything, she whispers, “Neville?”

“You really think we should stop the DA?” Neville asks her. His tone is flat, controlled, very un-Neville-like.

“Yes?” Lux replies but it comes out more as a question than an affirmation. “No, of course not…” she says then, knowing, deep down, that she doesn’t want to give up on the DA. She pauses, sighs, then says, “Maybe? I don’t know, I just… I think Snape, Nova, and Sage got into my head and then, just now, what Carrow could have done to us… I was terrified, Neville! For the first time, I was truly terrified. And now here we are, sitting on the floor of a literal  _ prison cell _ , in the dark, having no idea when we’re going to come out. I just want to know it’s worth it, I guess.”

Neville stays quiet for a few seconds then, says, “You want to know it’s worth it?” He sounds incredulous. “Why did you join the DA, exactly, Lux?”

Lux frowns, having not expected that. “Because I wanted to fight,” she replies as if it was obvious. She’s confused. She has never been asked this before. She usually is the one asking this type of question. No one has ever questioned her motives; she thought they were obvious enough. 

“Yeah, we know you want to fight,” Neville replies and Lux can hear the small smile in his voice. Weirdly enough, it annoys her more than anything. “But why?”

“Because of Umbridge!” Lux replies, still surprised by the question. “And because of You-Know-Who, and the Carrows, and Snape, and whoever stands in our way. I thought we were all pretty clear about that!”

“We are, we are,” Neville replies and there is still that  _ amused _ tone in his voice that gets on Lux’s nerves. “These people, that’s who we’re fighting  _ against _ . But what are  _ you _ fighting  _ for, _ at the end of the day? What’s your goal?”

“I don’t… I…. I fight for what’s right!” Lux shakes her shackles in frustration, already tired of them after about twenty minutes.

“Lux,” Neville sighs and he now too sounds slightly annoyed. “See? This is why Nova, Adelia, Ash, and Sage don’t follow you. You fight because you want to keep busy, and you fight because you can, not because you have to…”

“I don’t get it,” Lux cuts him off. “Of course I have to!”

“Lux, look at us.,” Neville says tiredly. “Look at all of us. We all have a reason to fight this battle but you…”

“Are you saying I don’t have anything to lose? Is that it?” Lux asks Neville, her voice cold, not trying to hide how offended she is anymore.

“I don’t know, that’s what I’m asking!” Neville says back, his voice loud, his shackles shaking a little.

Lux snorts. “Okay,” she whispers before saying more loudly, “I have everything to lose, Neville, don’t you get it? My parents, they’re not my family. They don’t care about me. They gave up on me the minute they realized I was never going to be the perfect girl they hoped for. My real family, it’s Nyx and Selene, and Anya. It’s Gabriel, and Ezra, and Julian.  _ They _ are who I’m fighting for,  _ they _ are what I have to lose. Does that count? Is that enough for you?”

“Lux…”

“No, I’m asking because apparently, I have to prove myself. So what? You guys talk about this behind my back? You think I’m in it just for the thrill of it?  _ My brother is missing _ . My best friends are all missing. I have no one else, you hear me? If they’re gone? Well, I might as well throw myself from the top of the Astronomy Tower because I’ll have. No one. Left.”

“Lux,” Neville says again, trying now to appease her. Lux has to roll her eyes. “I’m sorry… I just… I didn’t mean to hurt you. You just… scared me with your talks of giving up on the DA and I-”

“I only suggested it because it’s causing more harm than good so far. I mean we’ve  _ literally _ reached rock bottom,” she replies without letting him finish, shaking her shackles for emphasis.

“We can’t think like that, Lux. We got to have faith, we got to have hope. If we give up now, we’re doomed.”

Lux doesn’t reply to that. If she could, she would have crossed her arms, to pout. she’s sulking and doesn’t even understand how she ended up feeling so mad at Neville when just an hour ago he saved her life. It’s even more frustrating as his words keep resonating in her head. She can’t deny that he is right. Hell, that’s what she keeps telling Nova and Kai and the others. Yet, somehow, Snape and the Carrows have managed to get under her skin. However, Neville’s determination in all of this is a silver lining and Lux wonders where that comes from.

“Neville?” she asks tentatively.

“Yeah?” he replies. He doesn’t sound angry anymore.

“What’s your reason to fight?” she asks.

“What?”

“You said that we all had a reason to fight…. What’s yours?”

Neville doesn’t reply right away, and Lux fears she has said the wrong thing again. 

“I’m not surprised Harry, Ron, and Hermione didn’t tell you,” Neville says after a while, “but Gabriel? Really?”

“What?” Lux asks confused. “What didn’t he tell me?”

The irony of the question isn’t lost on her. It appears that Gabriel, the boy she has considered her best friend since basically diapers, often forgets to tell her things. One more, one less, does it really matter in the grand scheme of things?

“My parents,” Neville replies, and this time his voice sounds weaker, more like the Neville she first met rather than the Neville she now knows. “They… They were part of the Order during the first war. Bellatrix Lestrange and a few other Death Eaters attacked them after You-Know-Who fell. They…” Neville pauses, sounding choked up. “They… They tortured them. They… They never… really... recovered.”

Lux sighs, wanting to beat herself up for bringing it up right now.  _ One day, you’ll learn to shut your mouth, Astor... _

“Merlin, Neville... I’m so sorry I didn’t know…”

“Yeah, I know,” Neville replies, huffing out a joyless laugh. “Don’t worry, you couldn’t have guessed. I never talk about it. I don’t like the way people look at me because of it. I guess this was the perfect moment to tell you…”

“Harry, Ron, and Hermione know?” Lux asks, trying to keep the conversation going so as to mask the pitiful tone of her voice.

“I told Harry when we first started the DA and Ron and Hermione saw us at St Mungo’s later that year.”

“What about Gabriel?” Lux asks although she has an idea.

“I assume his family bragged about it? I don’t know… He came to see me, after the Ministry. He made sure no one else was there and he told me he had learned that Bellatrix was there, asked me how I felt. It was nice having someone like him to talk to.”

“Yeah, Gabe is great like that,” Lux replies, unable to contain the small smile that comes with the thought of her best friend.

“You miss him?” Neville asks her, probably to keep the conversation going as the answer is pretty obvious.

“Every day,” Lux replies with a sigh.

“He’s going to make it, you’ll see,” Neville tells her and he sounds so sure that Lux might just believe him. “Gabriel is an extremely talented wizard. If anyone can make it, it’s him.”

“I hope you’re right.”

***

“Hey,” Ezra says as he stands up, “where are you taking them?”

Alecto points her wand at him right away, her patience having visibly reached its limits. “Sit down, boy, or I’m taking you with them.”

Lux pleads Ezra with her eyes and he recoils, letting Alecto take Lux and Neville away, and sitting back down. She grabs them by their wrists and practically drags them away, leaving behind her a stunned classroom. No one dares to talk for a while, fearing Alecto coming back at any moment.

Nova sits in silence at the desk, her eyes fixed on the floor. Ezra stares at her, feeling his heart trying to beat out of his chest as he replays in his mind everything that had just went down.

Suddenly next to him, Seamus stands up. His chair makes such a noise that everyone looks up to stare at him, surprised and confused.

“I’m going to get McGonagall,” he tells them, packing his bag and heading for the door.

“Seamus, sit down,” Nova hisses at him.

That more than anything makes Ezra stand up as well.

“Ezra!” Nova lets out.

“She  _ slapped _ Lux and she took Lux and Neville to God knows where. If that doesn't make you react, I don’t know what will. You can stay here all you want but I refuse to wait around while Lux and Neville get tortured.”

“You don’t know that,” Nova replies but it comes out weakly.

Ezra gives her an angry look and shakes his head.

“Come on, Ezra,” Seamus says, grabbing his arm, and the two of them leave the classroom, Lavender, Parvati, Ernie, and Hannah following after them.

“Wait, guys, come on!” Nova calls out but no one listens to her.

The group hurries through the corridors toward the Transfiguration class. They stop in front of the door, not sure how to approach the situation. Seamus pushes forward, however, and barges in while McGonagall is giving a class to the second year Gryffindors and Ravenclaws. They all stare at the group in confusion.

“Mister Finnegan! What in Merlin’s name do you think you are doing!” McGonagall exclaims, looking furious.

“It’s Lux and Neville, professor,” Seamus replies, slightly out of breath. “Professor Carrow took them.”

McGonagall opens and closes her mouth but no sounds come out of it. Eventually, she schools her face.

“Mister McMillan. Could you please keep an eye on the class while I go talk to your classmates? They’re working on their  _ Vera Verto  _ spell.”

“Oh, sure, professor,” Ernie replies with a frantic nod, surprised by the turn of event.

“Good.” McGonagall turns toward her students. “Class, I’m leaving you for a few minutes with one of my seven-year students. Behave.”

She storms past Seamus, and he slowly closes the door behind them.

“Speak,” McGonagall orders the group.

Seamus looks at the others then launches in his explanation. He tells her about everything that went down between Alecto Carrow and Lux, tries to put emphasis on the fact that Alecto was saying awful things and that Lux was only defending her beliefs. 

“Then she took them. We have no idea where,” Lavender says, desperate.

They wait a bit for McGonagall to say something and when she doesn’t, Seamus asks, sounding scared. “Professor, what should we do?”

McGonagall seems to think about it, then sighs. “Nothing.”

“What?” Ezra lets out. “Professor! She could be torturing them  _ as we speak _ .”

“Mister Cohen,” McGonagall says tiredly. “I understand your anguish. Believe me, I am as distraught by all of this as you are but I’m afraid there’s nothing we can do against the Carrows, now. I’ll try to see if I can do anything for Longbottom and Astor by talking to them or professor Snape, but I’m afraid that’s it.”

“But, professor!” This time, it’s Hannah’s turn to protest.

“Miss Abbott, all of you, please listen. I know who you are and what you are doing, alright? I understand your motives but I want you to understand that the Carrows should not be taken lightly. You were there last year,” she goes on, looking at Ezra and Hannah, “You know what happened and what they are capable of. I have to be there to protect you, the same goes for all of your teachers. I can’t openly go against the Carrows or I’ll have to leave this school and then you will all be in even greater danger.”

“So what?” Ezra asks bitterly, “We just have to wait around and let Lux and Neville endure whatever the Carrows have planned for them?”

“I’m afraid so, Mister Cohen.”

“Bullshit,” Ezra sighs, turning around, ready to storm away.

“I am not finished, Mister Cohen,” McGonagall stops him. When he turns around, she says, “We wouldn’t be in this situation if Miss Astor hadn’t provoked Alecto Carrow.”

“Seriously?” Ezra asks, not caring if he is being disrespectful. “So it’s her fault? Is that it?”

“This is not what I meant and you know it. What happened to Miss Astor is a disgrace to this school and I will do everything I can to prevent that from happening to her or anyone else, again. But,” she adds, looking pointedly at each of them, “you should take this as a lesson. The Carrows have all the powers at this school now so I want you to be careful. I  _ need _ you to be smart. I’m here to protect you but it only works if you don’t willingly put yourself in danger.”

Ezra looks aways and clenches his jaw.

“This school might need you to fight for her, Mister Cohen,” McGonagall goes on, noticing the bitterness and anger in Ezra’s expression. “The school might need all of you. It’s up to you to make sure you’ll be there when that happens.”

And with that, she turns around and goes back inside. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it for today! Next chapter is the follow-up of this chapter, featuring all the seventh years, and also Kai. Next chapter is also the set-up for one of my favorite chapter and is one of the last chapter before what I call "the turning point."


	18. December 12, 1997 - 141 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting late today because I forgot what day we were and also NaNoWriMo has started so I was all over the place today. I'm using this year NaNo to try and finish writing VIGD as soon as possible. I've hit my word count today so that's good but I did struggle and it is the first day so I can't promise that I'll win NaNo this year.
> 
> This chapter is focused on Lux, with several scenes I really enjoyed writing, a bit of seventh year students shenanigans, Nova, Lux and Ezra, and a cute Lux and Kai convo. This chapter is leading up to the Christmas chapter I'll post next week and several other chapters that are sort of the turning point of the story.

Lux and Neville spend one week in detention. The whole week, they try to talk as much as possible to keep themselves busy. They must go over absolutely every single topic they can think of: the DA, the Order, their friends on the run, the teachers, school, Quidditch, Herbology, Music, Book, Kai even, at some point. Lux and Neville learn a lot more about each other during that one week than during the past six years they have known each other. In a weird way, Lux enjoys it. It’s so different getting to know someone like that, unfiltered. It’s easy to talk and be honest when they can’t see each other.

They get three meals a day, brought by scared elves who look like they’d rather be anywhere but here. Lux understands; she knows the feeling. They have an hour to eat and it is the only time they are allowed to take off the shackles. It’s a nice reprieve and Lux learns early on to enjoy it. They stand up and walk around, stretch out a little.

When the elves are there, Neville and Lux try to ask them questions, get  info about what’s going on upstairs, but the elves have been ordered to not speak to them so it is fruitless.

Sleeping is hard but they manage. Mostly because they get so sleep deprived that they just collapse to sleep after a while.

When they finally get out, Lux is quiet. She has lost touch with time and she feels completely drained, her body aching from having to stay seated on the cold, hard floor of the dungeons for so long. Neville and her weakly make their way toward the Gryffindor Common Room and go straight to bed, the other students still downstairs, eating dinner.

As she lays in bed, Lux is sure she’s never going to get up again. The next morning, Lavender practically has to carry her to their first class. She skipped breakfast and first period which, thankfully, they have free on Fridays, but she can’t skip the next one, which is Dark Arts with Amycus Carrow.

“Listen, Lux,” Lavender says as Parvati and her stand over her bed, “I get that your bed must feel like heaven after… whatever happened this week, and trust me, if it was up to me, I would let you stay there for as long as you want, but you can’t. The Carrows are too happy right now. If you don’t come to class, they’ll send you right back there and we can’t have that.”

Lux sighs but sits up, knowing full well that Lavender is right. “Fine. I guess I’ll skip History of Magic, I’m sure Binns will understand,” she replies half-heartedly, knowing that it wasn’t that likely that their ghost-professor will understand, given his condition and his tendencies to forget what’s it’s like to have a body.

She goes to shower, for the first time in a week, and realizes just now how dirty she felt. The hot water on her exhausted and sore body feels so nice that Lux has a hard time getting out. This time, it’s Ginny, who drags her out of the bathroom, looking sympathetic.

“I’m sorry, Lux, but you’re going to have to be brave. Let’s show those Carrows they can’t touch us, alright?” 

Lux puts on her uniform, making sure her sleeves and shirt collar hide the bruises left by the shackles. Ginny is right, the best way to confront the Carrows after her trip to the dungeons is to show them that she isn’t affected, no matter how huge a lie it is. The bruise on her cheek due to Alecto Carrow’s slap is almost gone and Lavender applies a bit of concealer on it to hide the traces that are still there. She looks at Lux’s face closely then decides to go ahead and just do Lux’s entire make-up, to hide her paleness, her dark under eyes, and her general sick air.

“We’re going to show them who owns that place,” she says before booping Lux’s nose.

Lux feels a little bit treated like a child but when she stops to think about it, she welcomes it. She won’t admit it out loud but it’s nice to feel cared for like that. Besides, she feels so empty that she is glad her friends are rallying up to help her. She can see that the three girls want to ask her what went down during their detention but they don’t push it. Lux tells them that the Carrows locked Neville and her up in the dungeons and they all look horrified but the look Lux throws them, let them know she doesn’t want to talk about it more.

When they get down, the boys are waiting for them, Neville looking as fresh as Lux.

“Lavender?” she asks with a nod toward his glowing face.

“Romilda, actually,” he says with a secret smile.

“Ready to face the music?”

Neville tilts his head from left to right but offers her his arm. “Let’s go.”

They leave together, feeling like they are about to give a performance, or something, the other seventh year Gryffindors behind them. Lux figures it’s kind of the case.

When they reach the Dark Arts class, all the Slytherins turn around to gape at them. Lux has no idea what has been said about them while they were gone but judging by Sage’s stunned face and Pansy’s slightly disappointed expression, she can imagine.

“Enjoyed your days off, Astor?” Millicent asks her, crossing her arms over her chest, a proud smirk on her face.

“It was a bit dull if you ask me. It didn’t live up to the hype, I’m afraid,” she replies with a shrug.

“I would pay hundreds of galleons to see that slap Professor Carrow gave you,” Pansy says, stepping forward, looking pissed.

“Come over here and I can give you a real life experience of it,” Lux replies, stepping forward as well.

“Lux, Pansy, come on,” Sage sighs, trying to come between the two girls.

“Stay out of this, Choi. We know you have a soft spot for freaks like her but don’t forget who are your housemates.  _ We _ are your family, here, remember?” Pansy says viciously, taking her attention briefly away from Lux to glare at Pansy.

“Girls, come on,” Theo steps in this time. “Don’t waste your time with her, Pansy. How would Kai feel if he knew you were bothering his girlfriend. Besides, she’ll get what she deserves soon enough. And hey, if we’re lucky, we’ll get to see Professor Carrow slap her in just a few minutes.”

Pansy glares at Theo, knowing he’s stepping in because he didn’t appreciate her jab at Sage, but backs down still, either because of Theo’s natural authority or because he mentioned Kai. She stays quiet for a little while but apparently, she can’t stay still for more than a minute because soon enough she’s turning to Lux once more and smirks.

“You didn’t find any skulls while you were downstairs, right?” she asks, ignoring Theo’s new warning. “Maybe your pal Julian is down there. Who knows? If not now, come back in a few weeks, he should be dead by then.”

Lux balls her fists and bites the inside of her mouth but doesn’t move, tries to not react. The other Gryffindors try to distract her, although they look just as mad as her. Lux knows Pansy is provoking her so that Amycus Carrow might find her ready to attack and she won’t give her that satisfaction.

Seamus however…

“You’re a hateful bitch, you know that?” Seamus spits, ready to jump on her. Thankfully, Neville and Parvati are on him before he can do anything.

“Seamus, stop,” Neville tells him, holding him back. “She’s not worth it,” he adds, looking straight at Pansy and her friends who are laughing their arses off.

“I’m sorry,” Pansy says rolling her eyes. “I didn’t want to awake whatever beast sleeps inside of you, Finnegan. I’m just saying, maybe I should start taking bets on which of your friends will die first. I doubt it’ll be Potter, this guy is worse than a cockroach. Of course, I’m still holding out hope for Granger and Weasley but these two tend to stick around Potter so not that likely. There’s Rose, of course, and, your little boyfriend Thomas, and oh! That one would be a real surprise but perhaps your dear little Gabriel could-”

“Enough!”

To everyone’s surprise, it’s Theo who speaks out again. Pansy is so shocked that her mocking smile drops as she looks, wide-eyed, at her friend. Lux is just as surprised, gaping at Theo for getting angry at Pansy like that on behalf of his cousin. 

No one dares to speak after that, an awkward silence having fallen over the group of Slytherin, and the Gryffindors are too stunned and amused to say anything. Neville and Lux look at each other, both exhausted but trying to keep themselves motivated for the rest of the day.

Amycus Carrow shows up just a few seconds later, smirking when he notices Neville and Lux there. “Astor, Longbottom. I’m glad you could join us today. I think you’ll enjoy our next chapter.”

He opens the door to let everyone in, then walks to the front of the class and look at them with a teasing smile.

“Alright, so today, we’re going to start one of the most exciting parts of this year curriculum. As I told you at the beginning of the year, I want you to be familiar with all the aspects of your magic, the Dark Arts included. So today, we’ll start with my favorite subject of them all: the Unforgivable curses. I assume you already know their names? If I’m correct, one of your teachers gave you a class about them.”

Lux barely manages to stop herself from rolling her eyes.  _ One of our teachers… _

“Choi, what don’t you give us the name of the first one?”

“Oh no, not again,” Lux hears Seamus mumble behind her.

“Uh, there’s the… the Imperius Curse,” Sage says, looking and sounding unsure.

“Yes, very good, what can you tell us about that one?” Amycus asks, looking joyful. Lux is deeply bothered by how into it he seems. This might be the most teacher-like he has been since he began these classes and the most disturbing subject she has ever been taught about.

“It’s, er, it’s a curse that allows the caster to control someone. The target doesn’t question their action. They do what the caster wants them to do, and they feel entirely relaxed the whole time they are under the spell.”

“Very good, Miss Choi,” Amycus confirms with a smile and a nod. “Ten points to Slytherin. We will study the Imperius curse first, as it is the easiest curse to start with. The Cruciatus curse and the Killing curse are two very complex spells and I don’t even expect you to manage to cast them but we will see. For now, I will teach you all you need to know to master the Imperius curse, which I believe you are already quite familiar with? One of your teachers taught you how to resist it if I recall correctly? Goyle?”

“Oh yes, sir,” Goyle replies, looking startled but proud of himself. Lux is pretty sure this is the first time he has had the answer to a question asked to him during class.

“Good, good. Very good. Alright, let’s get started then!”

Thankfully - Lux isn’t sure the word “thankfully” is the right word to use but no other word comes to her mind at the moment - they don’t learn to cast the Imperius curse that day. They mostly spend the hour listening to Amycus rave about the purpose of the Imperium curse, the famous instances in which the curse was used, and the instances in which  _ he _ used the curse.

When they get out of class, most student, except Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle look like they’ve just seen a ghost. To Lux’s surprise, even Blaise and Theo look startled by the direction this year is taking. Theo and Lux exchange a glance when Amycus dismisses them but it’s so brief that she is sure she imagined it. When she looks up again, Blaise and Theo are nowhere to be seen.

When Lux gets out of class, her jaw almost drops when she sees Ezra waiting for her, leaning against the wall, looking at his wand. She didn’t expect the wave of emotion that washes over her when she sees him, a mix of relief and hope but also hurt and sadness and fear, all the emotions she felt and buried deep inside of her since going down the dungeons surfacing all at once.

Ezra looks up when he hears the door open and looks on the verge of crying when he sees Lux looking at him. They both collide a few seconds later and wrap their arms around each other, none of them wanting to let go. 

“You okay?” he asks her, burying his face in his neck.

Behind them, Pansy starts giggling and they hear Seamus telling her to go fuck herself.

“Bit more complicated than that,” she admits, “but I’m good.”

Ezra squeezes her and pulls away, looking at Neville.

“You okay, bro?”

Neville shrugs. “We just spent an hour talking about Unforgivable Curses and how to cast a good Imperius curse so you tell me.”

Ezra’s eyes grow wide, his eyebrows raising in shock. “Really?”

“Really,” Lux confirms with a sigh.

“I… Okay,” Ezra simply says, not sure what to say besides that. “I… I was about to go to the library. Wanna come with me?” he asks Lux, more than the others.

She seems to think about it then nods. “Sure. I have a killer headache, the quiet will be nice.”

“Alright let’s go then,” Ezra replies, linking his fingers with Lux.

Lux looks at their clasped hands, not sure what to say or do, but not minding much either. The others wave at them and go the opposite way, going back to their Common Room, Lavender and Parvati giggling together as they watch Ezra and Lux holding hands. Lux ignores them just like she tries to ignore the sweeping feeling she feels in her stomach.

Lux always considered Ezra to be one of her closest friends but she’s realizing now just how much she needs him. She’s pretty sure Ezra has feelings for her. Even before Seamus’s remark, she thought she could see something in his eyes whenever they looked at each other but she never dared to mention it. First because these kinds of conversation freak her out but also because she has no idea if having this type of relationship with him is something she wants. They’re fine like that, she tells herself, and tries not to think about it too much. She knows the others have noticed as well. Of course, there’s Seamus, who made a remark about it on Halloween night, and Neville asked about it when they were in the dungeons but besides that, it has always remained unspoken, something she only thinks about when she feels her friends looking at them. In fact, it has remained unspoken for so long that mentioning it now would make it an even bigger deal than it actually is.

The library is pretty empty when they get there and Lux takes a huge, relieved breath. She has never been the best at respecting Madam Pince’s rule of silence inside the library but today, she’s grateful for it.

“You okay?” Ezra asks her again, having probably heard her.

“Yeah, yeah, don’t worry.”

They take place at a table in the far back of the library, between two aisles, near the windows. 

“Can I… Can I ask you where you were?”

Lux hesitates and is surprised to find that she actually wants to talk about it with him. Ezra looks horrified as she tells him everything that happened but doesn’t say anything, just listens to her.

“It wasn’t as bad as it sounds,” she adds at the end when she notices how Ezra is looking at her, “not with Neville.”

“Lux, that’s… They can’t  _ do  _ that.”

Lux shrugs. “They did. And again, it could have been worse. They could have… I don’t know, tortured us or something. They didn’t. They left us alone.”

“Lux, you were shackled for one week straight in a cell below the lake. I’m pretty sure that counts as torture.”

Lux shrugs. “Maybe. But it could have been worse,” she repeats, and Ezra gives her a sympathetic look, probably thinking she is telling herself that rather than actually believing it.

“You have bruises on your wrists, Lux,” Ezra replies.

Lux looks down and sure enough, her sleeves have gone up, revealing the deep red and bluish marks around her wrists. She sighs and hides them quickly, keeping her sleeves between her fingers to keep them in place.

“It’ll heal quickly. And anyway, I mark easily.” She tries to give him a reassuring smile. “Trust me, Ezra, okay? I’m alright.”

Ezra goes to say something but they are cut off by someone stopping next to their table.

Lux gets ready to apologize, thinking Madam Pince is here to tell them to whisper but stops herself when she sees olive skin, a black pleated skirt, a yellow tie, and dark brown, wavy hair.

“Nova.” Lux’s voice as she says her friend’s name is cold and she doesn’t try to hide her displeasure at seeing her.

Ezra stares at Nova but stays quiet, probably to avoid causing a scene.

“Lux, hi. I wanted to see how you were doing,” Nova says but it sounds more judgmental than caring.

“Oh,” Lux replies, slightly surprised. “I’m alright,” she says, glancing at Ezra who gives her a doubtful look.

“No, you’re not,” Nova says firmly, taking them both by surprise.

“I’m… not?” Lux asks, her eyes wrinkling in confusion.

“No, you’re not if you thought standing up to Carrow like that was a good idea!”

“Oh, here we go,” Lux whispers at the same time as Ezra sighs, “Nova… Seriously?”

“I’m not talking to you, Ezra, I’m talking to Lux,” Nova replies coldly, her eyes never leaving Lux. Lux and Ezra both give her an unimpressed look.

“Okay…” Ezra lets out, seeming offended.

“No need to talk to him like that,” Lux tells her firmly, not amused.

“Oh sorry, you’re the only one allowed to boss him around, I forgot,” Nova says back, rolling her eyes.

“I don’t boss him around!” Lux protests just as Ezra mumbles, “How about no one bosses me around.”

“It doesn’t matter!” Nova says a tad louder than necessary, shaking her head. “I’m not here to talk about Ezra, I’m here to talk about you Lux. Do you actually enjoy being tortured.”

Lux frowns. “Not really, no.”

“Then why, in Merlin’s name, did you talk to Professor Carrow like that?”

“ _ Professor _ ,” Ezra repeats under his breath, letting out a joyless laugh.

Nova ignores him.

“I couldn’t just sit there and ignore what she was saying, Nova,” Lux replies. “Don’t you get it? She was taunting us. She’s a Death Eater. She-”

“Merlin, Lux! Stop it!” Nova cuts her off, looking exceeded. “Don’t you get it? Of course, she’s taunting you! That’s her goal, she’s provoking you and you fall into her trap every time! Her game isn’t one you want to play.”

“And what do you know about her game, Nova, uh?” Ezra finally chimes in, absolutely furious. “What do you know about her or anything else, for that matter? You weren’t there last year when  _ she _ was attacking us, Julian included. We’re not playing any games, we’re standing up for ourselves, there’s a difference. You used to see it, too.”

Lux shakes her head and leans back in her chair, pretending to read the title of the book in front of her. “She never did, Ezra. She only joined the DA because Julian joined. She got scared the minute it got serious. She’s a coward.” She says those last three words straight to Nova’s face, challenging her to say something back.

Nova bites her lower lip, looks away, and nods. When she looks back, there is no trace of her usual kindness left. “You think you’re so much better than me, uh, Lux? You think you’re better than all of us because _you_ , you know what’s going on, you know what to do. You, you’re fighting, and that makes you _brave_ , that makes you _strong_. Right? Well, you’re a fool. Standing up to the Carrows doesn’t make you anything but an idiot. You’re a child and if you don’t stop soon, you’re going to get killed. You go around and call people coward for not sharing your death wish without realizing that, unlike us, you can _afford_ to act like that. You have no one outside of this school. Nyx, Gabriel, Selene, and Anya are gone. They probably won’t last long, if they’re not dead already. And your parents, they don’t give a shit about you. They’re ashamed of being your parents. They’re probably even going to help the Carrows catch you if you keep risking their lives like that. So you can be reckless. You’re not risking anything else but your life. But Adelia, Sage, Ash, me, even Ezra, we have a family that’s still out there, at You-Know-Who’s mercy. You should be glad you don’t have to worry about that. And I wish Ezra could see that he’s risking more by following you.”

When she’s done, Lux can only stare at her, jaw clenched, trying to find the right words to say as tears pool at her eyes. In front of her, Ezra is practically vibrating from how angry he is and Lux grabs his hand to try and calm him down. When she finds something to say, she holds everything back as a small, almost smirk stretches her lips. Her jaw set, eyes ablaze, she says, “Thanks for the pep talk, Nova, but we have homework to do, so can you please leave, now?”

Nova looks at them one last time then storms away, fuming. When she’s gone, Ezra lets out a long sigh and turns toward Lux. “Well, that was pleasant. Are you- Lux?” He stops himself when he realizes that Lux has started to cry.

“Don’t,” she replies harshly but Ezra doesn’t take it personally. “I can’t… not now.” She’s still holding his hand and he realizes now how tightly she’s gripping it. Without another word, he covers their hands with his other and lets her cry softly.

When she starts to sob, Ezra crosses the table and sits next to her, pulling her toward him. They stay like this for a few minutes before Lux finally calms down, Lux half crying, half laughing as she rubs her eyes.

“Why are you laughing?” Ezra asks her, slightly confused.

“My make up. Lavender spent so much time this morning making me look healthy and I’m ruining everything.”

“Want me to fix it up for you?” he asks, already pulling out his wand.

“Nah, it’s fine,” Lux replies with a snort. “I don’t care if the whole school sees me like that. I already have the weirdest reputation, this won’t change much. They’re probably going to think Kai and I broke up or something,” she jokes, forgetting it’s Ezra sitting with her.

Right away, she feels him tensing up and wants to kick herself. She wants to tell him that there’s no reason for him to be jealous of Kai but she doesn’t because there’s no reason for her to reassure him.

Awkwardly, she detangles herself from him and coughs a little, trying to pretend she wasn’t crying just one minute ago. “Should we get to work?”

“I don’t think we have time, now,” Ezra says, looking disappointedly at his watch. “I think I’m going to go back to my common room before lunch. I forgot a book there.”

“Oh well, let me come with you, then,” Lux replies easily.

Ezra looks surprised but doesn’t question it. “Yeah, okay. Let’s go.”

They stand up and go to leave the library when Kai shows up in front of them, his satchel on his shoulder, hands in his pockets. Lux is surprised but weirdly happy to see him, a feeling Ezra clearly doesn’t share.

“For god’s sake,” Lux hears him mumbles.

“Hey, er, Lux? Can I talk to you?”

Ezra looks pointedly at Lux who doesn’t look back at him, too busy trying to guess what Kai wants to say before he says it. She can’t figure it out however and sighs. “Sure. I’ll meet you in the Great Hall, Ezra, okay?”

Kai seems to want to give them their privacy, looking down and rubbing his foot against the wooden floor of the library. Ezra stares between Kai and Lux then sighs. “Sure. See ya,” he says, grabbing her hand and squeezing it. He looks one last time at Kai, then leaves.

“I don’t think your boyfriend likes me very much,” Kai comments as they watch Ezra storm away, very much in the same way Nova had earlier. 

“That’s because he thinks  _ you’re _ my boyfriend,” Lux replies. Then she looks at Kai and frowns. “And he’s not my boyfriend.”

“Really?” Kai asks, looking genuinely surprised. “Could have sworn he was. Guess we’re not going to go on double dates just yet, then?”

Lux looks at him in bewilderment, taken aback by his so casual acknowledgement of his relationship with Gabriel. They really have come a long way, she can’t help but think.

“So what’s up?” she asks.

“I was actually going to ask you the same thing,” Kai replies, looking at her face.

Lux remembers her smudged make-up then and blushes a little. “Shit. I forgot. Uh, yeah. I had a rough morning.”

“Or so, I’ve heard. Understand why I can’t stand Nova, now?”

“Wait,” Lux asks, frowning. “You heard all of that?”

“To my defense, I was sitting there before you came in. If you really wanted to avoid eavesdropping, you should have been more careful.”

“Right,” Lux replies, rolling her eyes. “Well, the reason for this,” she gestures at her face, “needs no more explaining, then, so again… What’s up?”

“Well, first I wanted to make sure you were okay after… last week,” he says with a grimace. “But I guess that ship has sailed. I also wanted to tell you that my mum’s invitation still stands so if you want to join us for Christmas, you’re welcome.” Kai pauses then adds, looking shy. “Besides, I wouldn’t mind seeing you.”

Lux cocks an eyebrow at him. “You hitting on me, Alpert?”

Kai makes a grimace. “No. Of course not. I just… My parents are dragging me to this Christmas party with their colleagues so I’ll feel better if you’re here.”

Lux smiles a little at that then gapes, when she realizes something. “Wait. A Ministry Christmas party? You’re talking about the Notts’?”

“The Notts are organizing this party?” Kai repeats loudly, earning himself a stern “shhh” from Madam Pince.

“I guess so. They always throw a party on Christmas Eve for all their pureblood friends. My parents always attend it but Gabriel and I usually bail to spend Christmas with the Caulfields.”

“We usually spend Christmas with either my dad’s German family or my mum’s Swiss family. This is the first time I’m spending Christmas in England,” Kai explains, looking distraught. “I don’t get why my parents wouldn’t tell me the party was at the Notts.”

Lux looks sadly at him. “Maybe because they knew you wouldn’t come if you did.”

Kai seems to think about it then looks up abruptly. “Or maybe they didn’t tell me because they knew I  _ would _ .”

“You think your parents don’t want you at the- Yeah, no, makes sense,” Lux says, realizing that indeed, having children in a literal Death Eater house wouldn’t be the best move. “Well, I guess I’ll see you there, then,” she says with a smile before frowning. “Uh. Guess that won’t help the rumours about us.”

“I thought people would think you and I broke up?” When Lux only stares at him, unimpressed, Kai laughs a little. “I’m sorry, I told you. I was right there, you walked past me, you could have seen me but you didn’t. That’s on you, Astor,” he concludes, raising both hands in defense.

“Yeah, yeah, see you there, Alpert,” Lux calls out as she starts walking out of the library.

“See you there,” Kai says back before being shushed by Madam Pince once more. 

  
  



	19. December 24, 1997 - 129 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is one of my favourite chapter for various reason. I call it "The Christmas Chapter" because well... it's set during Christmas and also I only wrote it for the fun of it. It originally didn't exist in the first draft but I wanted to have those characters in the same room so this happened...

Being at the Notts without Gabriel is very weird but Lux isn’t as scared as she thought she would be. Spending every day in a castle with three Death Eaters must have acclimated her to this kind of situation.

When her parents and her arrive, Lux immediately spots Mr and Mrs Nott, looking down at their guests from the staircase. By reflex, she tries to hide as soon as she sees them, not knowing how to act now that she knows what she knows. Reine and Vinicius have always been quite cold with her but Gabriel always reassured her that they were cold with everyone and it was nothing against her. Lux never believed him and Gabriel probably knew it. For Lux, the reason behind this treatment was more due to the fact that Gabriel’s parents most likely believed they were dating and that Lux, even as an Astor, wasn’t good enough for their only son. Lux’s parents, on the other hand, always cherished that friendship, sure in their minds that Lux and Gabriel would get married one day.

“Lux, dear, where is your friend?” Pamela Astor asks her daughter excitedly once they are rid of their cloaks.

Lux sighs. Since Gabriel disappearance, all of her mother’s hope seems to have been put into another one of Lux’s friendship. 

When they came to pick her up at the train station, Lux’s parents seemed furious. Lux knew right away that it was because of her actions with the DA and sure enough, her mother was quick to lecture her about her behavior at school and the reputation she was making for herself. Lux’s first few days back at home were tense and weird. She felt like everything she did or said were a personal affront to her mother and she ended up spending most of her time locked up in her room to avoid spending time with her parents. Then Pamela started talking about the Notts’s Christmas Eve party and Lux asked if she could come. Charles and Pamela looked at her as if she had grown a second head, Pamela chuckling lightly.

“Oh, honey. You don’t actually believe we are going to parade you in front of the _Notts,_ of all people. They might think we endorse your actions and we wouldn’t want that,” Pamela informed her.

“No, of course,” Lux muttered.

“Don’t mumble like that, Lux,” Charles replied sternly behind his file. “It’s crass. Besides, your mother is right. You are making a fool of yourself at Vinicius’s school and bringing you would be an insult to the Notts and their guests.”

Seeing her mother’s desperate ambition as her last hope, Lux countered, “But my friend will be here!”

“Your friend?” Charles repeated, looking disdainful, lowering the report he was reading. “What kind of friend of yours could attend such an event? The Chois are in Korea for the holidays.”

“Kai Alpert,” Lux replies, tensing. “You’ve met him. I was at his house, this summer?” she reminded them as if they could have forgotten.

“The Alperts?” Pamela repeated then, voice a little higher than usual, taking the bait right away. “I didn’t know they knew the Notts.”

“I didn’t either,” Lux half-lied. Technically she doesn’t know if the Notts have ever met the Alperts but some Notts do know the Alperts so... “Kai told me his parents were invited and we thought we could meet up there, spend Christmas together?”

It was a bit of a stretch but deep down, Lux knew it was true. She’d been running in circles these last few weeks back home, having no one to hang out with. Seeing Kai would be a welcome distraction and, besides, she knew that voicing it like that would only interest her mother more.

Charles went to say something but Pamela stopped him, putting her hand on his. “Lux. Do you promise to behave?”

“Yes,” Lux replied easily, not knowing if her mother meant here or at Hogwarts. _Loophole..._

Pamela grinned at her then, a full-on, bright smile, that practically took half of her face and even reached her eyes. Lux felt a pang of hurt as she realized that it had been a very long while since her mother had looked at her like that.

“Well, then, I suppose we can take you to the party. I’m actually going to Diagon Alley to buy some dresses this afternoon. Do you want to come with me?”

The days before the party were spent preparing for it and answering all of her mother’s question regarding the Alperts and Lux’s relationship with them. Even Charles ended up taking the bait, asking Lux’s lots of questions about William's programme. Lux tried to give them the answers they wanted to hear, realizing that the more she talked about the Alperts, the more her parents seemed to like her.

It was weird being at home like that. They almost looked like a normal family now, her parents more interested in their daughter’s life during those short few weeks than during the last four years. Lux name-dropped Kai, Gabriel, Sage, and Ash as much as possible, and hid every letter she would receive from Ezra, fearing that if her parents were reminded of her time at school, this new balance would collapse. Lux was ashamed to admit it, and would never tell anyone, but it felt nice to receive her parents’ approbation like that. She knew it was based on a somewhat twisted truth but she tried to not think about it, feeling truly loved by her parents for the first time in years.

“I don’t see him, mum,” Lux replies, accepting a glass of champagne from one of the waiters.

“Oh well, why don’t you go look for him? Your father and I have people to go say hi to. Come find us once you see him!” Pamela drops a kiss on her daughter’s cheek and disappears into the crowd, Charles following close behind her.

***

“You’re sure you’re going to be okay, _Schatz_?” Miranda asks Kai as they stand in front of the gate of the Nott estate.

“Yes, mum,” Kai replies, somewhat annoyed, entering before his parents can say anything else.

In the end, Kai decided to confront his parents about the Christmas party. As soon as he got home, he asked them why they hadn’t thought of mentioning that the party was taking place at the Notts, to which his parents had clumsily replied:

“Oh, didn’t we tell you?”

“It must have slipped our mind…”

When Miranda went as far as saying, “We didn’t think it mattered,” Kai glared at her.

Miranda and William both sighed and apologized, explaining that they didn’t think it was a good idea to have him inside Gabriel’s house in these conditions. When it was clear that there was something else but that they didn’t want to say it, Kai threw them a deadpan look.

“Is it because of Gabriel or is it because his entire family are Death Eaters?”

Miranda and William looked at each other, probably to decide if they should keep on lying or cut the bullshit. William sighed again.

“Lux told you that?”

“Of course, she did!” Kai replied, letting all of his annoyance and feeling of betrayal out. “She’s the only one who tells me anything around here. The question is how did you two know?”

William went to say something but Miranda beat him to it. “It’s complicated. The Ministry is a messy place, these days, Kai. Lux must have told you.”

“And yet, you still work for them.”

“It’s not as easy or as simple as Ministry equals bad, son,” William replied.

“They are _Death Eaters_ , dad,” Kai said back, enunciating each word slowly. “I don’t get why you keep working for them. We’re at _war_ , for Merlin’s sake!”

“If we all leave the Ministry, then what happens then, uh?” Miranda asked, her tone as pedagogical as it could get. “We let the Death Eaters take control of the Ministry and we give up?”

“They already control the Ministry,” Kai mumbled back, voicing all of this for the first time. It was weird to hear himself suddenly talk like Lux that way.

“Yeah, and me, as well as other colleagues, we’re trying to minimize their impact on the magical world.”

“What about Hogwarts?” Kai asked. “I don’t see you minimizing their impact when they _literally_ locked Lux and Longbottom up in the dungeons.”

Miranda and William looked at each other again, visibly unaware of this.

“They did that?” Miranda asks, her voice shaking a little.

“Yeah, and they’re teaching us unforgivable spells because apparently, they’re legal now? What do you do about that?”

Miranda looked helpless as she replied, “There isn’t much we can do.”

Kai rolled his eyes. “That’s what I thought. So you see? It doesn’t matter if the party is thrown by Death Eaters. I’m used to those. I still want to come.”

“Kai…” William sighed.

“You’re going, right? Then I’m going. Besides, Lux will be there. I can’t leave her alone there.”

“What about the fact that we’ll be at Gabriel’s house?” Miranda asked cautiously.

Kai shrugged. “I have to meet my inlaws at some point,” he tried to joke but it fell flat. “It’s fine,” he said, more truthfully. “I’ll be fine. Lux will be there and I… I don’t even worry that much about Gabriel,” he blatantly lied, neither of his parents, nor himself, buying it. “He knows what he’s doing, he’s good with magic, and he’s with friends,” he said before quickly adding, “Allegedly,” remembering that his parents didn’t know he had read the letter Nyx had left. “I’m fine, he’s fine, everything is fine,” he concluded, realizing he was doing a bit much but unable to stop himself. The bitter _besides, we’re not together anymore_ , stayed at the tip of his tongue.

After that evening, Miranda and William kept making sure that Kai still wanted to go, probably hoping he would change his mind, and that he was doing alright.

Kai humored them every time at first, but now, it’s starting to get old.

As soon as they get inside the house, Vincent, the Notts butler, comes to take their cloaks, and a waiter comes to offer them a glass of champagne. Kai declines his and searches for Lux in the crowd, spotting her near the buffet. 

“Mum, dad,” he says as he points at her.

“Oh yes,” William says, “let’s go say hi to her.”

The Alperts make a beeline for her and she looks very pleased, almost relieved even, when she sees them.

“Mr and Mrs Alpert! Hi!” Lux greets them, shaking both of their hands. “Kai,” she then adds with a nod.

“Lux,” he replies, doing the same.

They exchange a small, secretive smile, Lux surprised to be so happy to see him.

“How are you doing, Lux?” Miranda asks, a small, tender smile on her lips.

“Good,” Lux says, knowing they won’t buy it but trying to behave as her parents instructed her. “Happy to be here,” she adds through gritted teeth, looking briefly at Kai, who gives her a closed mouth, nervous smile.

“Oh well, I’m glad you think so, Lux,” a cold, regal voice calls out from behind the Alpert, Lux freezing when she sees who just joined them.

“Mrs Keita,” she says nervously, trying to smile but failing miserably. She risks a glance at Kai but he stares at Reine Keita without blinking. “Good evening.”

“Good evening, Lux,” Reine replies but it feels more like an insult than a greeting. “Miranda, William,” Reine goes on, a bit more warmly, smiling at the Alperts. “I didn’t know you knew Lux.”

“She’s a friend of our son,” William explains, making a gesture toward Kai who could have easily been mistaken for a sculpture at this point.

“Your son! Yes, of course. I heard a lot about you, young man. I think you’re friend with my nephew? Theodore? You’re Kaius right?” she says, talking directly to him. “Yes, I hear you are quite the Quidditch prodigy.”

“Oh, er, yes, thanks, hi,” Kai stutters out, awkwardly reaching out to shake Reine’s hand.

She shakes it with a little laugh. “You’re a good kid, Kaius. Your teachers all have a very high opinion of you. And the Headmaster, of course, only has good things to say about you. I hope you won’t ruin that and let yourself be influenced by misguided acquaintances,” she goes on, looking at Lux now. “I heard about your extracurricular activities, Lux. You’re a seventh year, now. Throwing your future away like that isn’t a smart move. What would my son and your brother think of all of that?”

“Well,” Lux replies, challenging Reine with her eyes as she sees Kai bawling his fists next to her. “I wouldn’t know, would I? They’re missing after all.”

“They are,” Reine replies with a nod. “But not for long. We’ll find them soon. We always do.” The last sentence comes out as a threat and Lux feels herself paling, her reaction making Reine smirk. “Well, I’m afraid I have other guests to greet but Miranda, William, I am very glad you could make it. I have several people I want to introduce you to, if you don’t mind.”

“Of course not, Reine,” Miranda replies. “Lead the way.”

“Kai, it was a pleasure seeing you,” Reine says before turning to Lux and smirking once more. “Lux.” And with that, she leaves, disappearing into the crowd, Miranda and William following here.

Once Lux and Kai are alone, she turns toward him. “Well, at least she likes you.”

Kai cracks a smile and Lux wraps a comforting arm around his shoulder.

***

Julian has never been to Merlin’s Vale. He has heard about it, of course - plenty of times, actually, from Nova, and Lux, and Gabriel, and his friends, and other students at school - but he has never _been_ there. He figured, until tonight, that he would probably stand out.

The town is hidden in the Southern Fells in Lake District and is impossible to access via muggle transportation. The people that live there are either of pureblood descent or working for said people of pureblood descent. All the families who have an estate there are well-known among the British magical community. Some are even known through Europe or even worldwide in some cases. Families who live there include the Astors, the Chois, the Zabinis, the Smiths, or the McLaggens but the biggest estate belongs to the Notts. It’s a massive mansion that sits high over the other houses, right next to the family thestral farm. It looks ominous enough that Julian wonders why no one suspected it housed Death Eaters until two years ago.

Inside, the party is well underway, which Julian hopes means they missed a good part of it and won’t have to stay too long. Julian told Valentina that they should have stayed home and celebrated Christmas with Kingsley but she reminded him that Kingsley was at Bill’s for Christmas and there was no way they could go with him.

“I get that you’re a mysterious spy and all but you could have at least taken Christmas off. I’m not even talking about celebrating with Selene and all but just… stay away from all of… this,” he says, gesturing vaguely at the attendees.

“Julien,” Valentina sighs, grabbing two glasses of punch for him and her. “We already talked about this. It would have been suspicious if I didn’t come. We’re going to stay for a few hours and then, we’ll go home and have our own party together, I promise. And Christmas is tomorrow, anyway.”

Julian rolls his eyes and goes to take a sip of his drink. His eyes land on the buffet however and he starts choking on his drink when he sees them. There’s a tall boy in a nice, fitted emerald suit talking to a blonde girl, wearing a long, dark red and gold cocktail dress, laughing at something the boy said. He stares at them, unable to take his eyes off as Valentina gently pats his back.

“You okay there?” she asks him, slightly amused, looking down at their glasses. “The punch isn’t that strong.”

“It’s not the punch,” Julian replies, sounding annoyed. “It’s them.” He points toward the champagne fountain and Valentina follows his fingers, gasping when she sees Kai and Lux talking animatedly.

“No,” Valentina says firmly, knowing right away what he’s about to say.

“Val, come on,” Julian replies, ready to fight back.

“Julien, no,” Valentina says again.

“But Val!” Julian protests, his voice going high. “She’s right _here_. Just… Let me go… I don’t know… let me go see her?”

“You’re seeing her now,” Valentina replies, trying to leave no room for discussion but failing.

“Val, come on, _please,_ ” Julian pleads. “You could… if you go talk to her, I’ll be here, right? Standing next to you? And I’d... I’d know, you know? I’d know how she’s doing, how they’re all doing, _”_ he explains, talking fast, trying to convince her with his words, his eyes, his hands. “I’ll keep my mouth shut, I promise, but _please_ ,” he says again, his voice cracking a little.

Valentina looks between Julian and Lux several time, biting her lips, wanting to say no but knowing it would break his heart to be so close to one of his closest friend and yet so far. She sighs, pulling one last argument, a weak one, but still an argument. “She’s with my cousin…”

“Alpert is your cousin?” Julian asks, so surprised he almost forgets to sound desperate.

“Yeah, I told you,” Valentina replies, looking strangely at him.

“No, you didn’t!” Julian says, eyes wide, raising both hands. “You just showed me your aunt and uncle. How was I supposed to know they were Alperts’ parents?”

“Well now you know,” Valentina replies thinking she’s won.

“Alright and because he’s here, we can’t go see Lux?” Julian asks, crossing his arms over his chest, now angrier than sad.

“Julien…”

“Valentina…”

“Ugh, fine,” she eventually gives in. “But promise me you’ll behave. We can’t afford them knowing. You hear me?”

“Yes, yes,” Julian replies, already making his way toward Kai and Lux.

Valentina struggles to catch up with him and drags him behind her when they get there. She coughs a little when she is within earshot, trying to get their attention. Kai and Lux both look at her at the same time, Lux gaping and Kai smiling.

“Val, hey!” Kai exclaims. “I didn’t know you were here, too!”

He hugs her, Lux frowning at them.

“You guys know each other?” she asks harshly, looking between Kai and Valentina.

“Yeah,” Kai replies as if it was obvious. “Val’s my cousin.”

“Lux,” Valentina says carefully when she pulls back, giving her a sheepish smile that Lux only glares at. “Hi.”

Behind her, Julian can only stare, trying to make himself invisible.

Lux stares at Valentina then turns toward Kai. “I’m going to let you two catch up, then. I’ll see you later, Kai.”

“Lux, please, wait,” Valentina says urgently when Lux makes a move to leave, reaching out to grab her arm.

Lux looks at Valentina’s hand, then at Valentina’s face, glaring some more. Valentina drops her hand right away and Lux nods.

“Thank you,” she says coldly and, to Valentina’s and Julian’s surprise, she stays.

“I… How are you doing?” Valentina asks, not looking as sure as usual in front of Lux.

“How do you think?” Lux bites back, her eyes practically cursing her. 

“Lux…” Valentina sighs pleadingly.

Behind her, Julian’s eyes on Lux are full of concerns.

“No seriously,” Lux goes on, looking unimpressed. “How do you think I’m doing? My brother and four of my best friends are missing, and I have three Death Eaters on my arse at all time at school. Oh, also, did you know that your dear Ministry made it so that if I break a school rule, I can legally get shackled for a week in the dungeons? Believe me, it isn’t as fun as it sounds. So really, what do you think, Valentina? ”

“Lux..” Valentina says again, trying not to glance at Julian.

“Valentina…” Lux replies in the same tone and that makes Julian smile a little, even through his sadness. That’s when Lux notices him and winces.

“Who’s he?” she asks, a bit fearfully, her eyes fixed on Julian who feels like he just screwed up.

Valentina looks behind herself and tries to reassure Julian. “Don’t worry. That’s my assistant. Julien.”

“Julien?” Lux replies, giving him a once-over.

“Hi,” Julian says, reaching out to shake her hand. “Pleased to meet you.”

“Likewise,” Lux replies, raising an eyebrow at him but not shaking his hand.

“How is Ezra?” Valentina asks then, wanting to bring Lux’s attention back on her.

Lux seems startled at Ezra’s mention. Kai looks at her and Lux sighs. “He’s good,” she says truthfully, knowing the affection Valentina has for Ezra. “He struggles like all of us but he’s doing good.”

“And Nova?” Valentina pushes, hoping Lux will answer.

Lux shrugs, her face hardening at Nova’s mention. “We don’t really talk these days. She’s following your footstep, you know? Decided to blend in and obey to the Carrows’ every word so… But you tell me,” Lux goes on, looking falsely enthusiastic, clapping both of her hands together. “How is the Ministry doing, chasing muggle-borns? Caught anyone we know yet?”

“Lux, I-” Valentina starts but Lux cuts her off again.

“You should talk to Kai about that, you know? I’m sure your dearest cousin here would love to know what you think of the Ministry. Did you know,” she goes on, putting both of her fists on her hips, turning toward Kai who looks like he wants to disappear, “that she’s giving concerts to raise funds for the snatchers’ office? She’s a Ministry spokeswoman now and, of course,” she adds, looking back at Valentina, “I take you being here means you’re quite close to the Notts. Want to tell Kai how excited y’all are to catch Gabriel? And what you’ll do when you find him? I’m sure you two will still be tight as hell afterwards,” she spits before storming away.

Julian goes to stop her but remembers he can’t, right before reaching out. In front of him, Kai watches Lux go upstairs before looking confusedly back at his cousin.

“You work for the Ministry?”

Valentina looks at Julian who’s trying to tell her to say no with his eyes but she doesn’t catch it. “Yes. I work for Vinicius Nott’s office,” she admits to Kai, who looks startled by the news.

“I see. Er… I’m going to see if Lux is alright,” he says, biting his lip and not looking at Valentina. “I’ll see you later,” he adds before walking away.

Valentina sighs as she watches him leave and Julian puts his hand on her shoulder. “Kai is Gabriel’s boyfriend,” he tells her. “I didn’t know Lux knew.”

“But you did?” Valentina asks, raising a curious eyebrow.

“Yeah, it’s a long story.” When Valentina looks at him to go on, he explains. “I was looking for Gabriel one day and I found him. With Kai. We never talked about it again and I pretended I didn’t know and Gabriel pretended I didn’t know. It was better for the both of us, vis à vis Nova.”

“And Lux is friend with him, now…”

“Yeah,” Julian replies, looking at the stairs. “That’s weird. But not the weirdest thing I’ve seen recently.”

“Surely not,” Valentina replies, dejected. 

“Thank you, Valentina,” Julian says, looking at her in the eyes, trying to make her see how much he means it.

It must work because Valentina smiles sadly at him and wraps him up in her arms. “Merry Christmas, Jules.”

***

Kai follows Lux upstairs and finds her on the second floor, laying on a bed, staring a the ceiling. 

“Lux,” he says softly, knocking on the door.

“Kai,” Lux says, sitting up, rubbing her nose with her arm and dabbing under her eyes, showing that she cried. “I’m sorry about that,” she says immediately. “I shouldn’t have said what I’ve said, I shouldn’t have dragged you into this, I…”

“No, it’s…” He raises a hand to interrupt her. “Don’t worry about it,” he says as he sits next to her on the bed. “You and Valentina… I take it that there’s a lot of history there?”

Lux shrugs. “Not as much as you apparently.” When Kai gives her a pointed look, she sighs. “Yeah. You remember that conversation you heard between Nova and I? How she said that my parents and I didn’t get along. She was right. They’re not my family. Not really. Nyx, Selene, Anya, Gabriel, Ezra, Julian… They are. And once upon a time, Valentina was too. We used to be close to her, Ezra and Julian especially. But as time went by, she grew closer to the Ministry and we realized that we had… diverging opinions. A fight broke out between Selene and her during our fifth year and I hadn’t seen her since.”

“But you knew she worked for the Ministry now?” Kai asks with a frown.

“I did,” Lux replies with a nod. “My parents were bragging about it. They have always loved Valentina. She was friends with Nyx and Selene back at Hogwarts,” she explains before turning her head toward him. “The question is how you didn’t?”

Kai shrugs. “Valentina hasn’t been that much in touch with us lately. That’s why I was so happy to see her earlier,” he says with a depreciative laugh. “But Lux, I’m not really sure Valentina actually believes in the pureblood supremacists theories, you know?”

Lux snorts. “I know she doesn’t. But doesn’t that make it worse? She knows everything that’s going on and yet she still decides to works for them.”

Kai nods, seeming lost in thought, remembering what his parents told him at the beginning of the break. “Lux?” Lux hums. “Why aren’t you as hard on me as you are on Nova and the others?”

Lux looks at him, visibly startled by the question. “I don’t know,” she replies after a while. “It’s different, I guess? You don’t blame me for doing what I’m doing and you don’t ask us to stop. Nova… She used to be part of the DA, you know? But then, the night Dumbledore die, we all rallied to help Harry out and she refused to go. She refused to go and she tried to stop us from fighting. She has said pretty nasty things too since. She didn’t even go see Gabe at the hospital wing after the battle.”

“I didn’t either,” Kai points out, sounding ashamed.

“Yeah, well, again,” Lux replies, sensing Kai’s discomfort. “That’s different.”

Kai nods but he doesn’t look too pleased by that statement.

“Will you ever tell me how you two happened?” Lux asks after a bit, a small, teasing smile on her lips.

“Maybe,” Kai replies with a cheeky smile. “But not today.”

Lux doesn’t say anything, just looks around the room. “Do you know where we are, right now?”

Kai looks around as well and smiles. “His bedroom, I assume.”

The room doesn’t look lived in. The walls are painted dark red, and the floors are made of wood. There's an ensuite bathroom only separated from the bedroom by a curtain that’s opened at the moment. There are sheets on the bed, towels on the dryer, but there’s nothing on the desk, nothing in the dresser, nothing on the nightstands, nothing on the walls. The room is bare and Kai can’t imagine it was like that when Gabriel lived there.

“Want to see if I know my best friend well?” Lux asks him with a small smile, standing up before he gets to answer. She lays on her stomach on the floor and starts hitting different panel of the wooden floor until she gives a satisfied hum. “That’s it.” She presses on the panel until it gives out and reveals a small secret hiding. “Uh? That’s new,” she says, pulling out two boxes. “I only knew this one,” she says, handing the grey one to Kai.

“Are we sure we should be going through his stuff?” Kai asks, taking the box gingerly and putting it on his lap without opening it.

“He never hid this from me. This, however,” she points at the second, brown, box, “I didn’t know it existed. But I assume it’s about you so I’ll let you go through it.” They exchange boxes and Lux opens the first one, revealing a stack of drawings as well as muggle art supplies. “Gabe has always been very talented,” Lux says, more to herself than to Kai, as she looks at the drawings she has seen a hundredth time by now.

Kai leans against her and together they look at them. There are drawings of landscapes, Hogwarts, the Nott estate, what could be Equatorial Guinea and the Keitas’ house there, as well as portraits of Lux, Nova, Julian, Anya, and Sage, and small sketches of random stuff. There are also drawings of various creatures, including thestrals. 

“I didn’t know Gabriel could see them,” Kai whispers as he brushes over the drawing of two thestrals flying.

“Theo and him saw Theo’s mum die when they were kids,” Lux says sadly. “He doesn’t like talking about it much, that’s probably why he didn’t tell you.”

“Probably,” Kai replies, still staring at the drawing. “Besides, I guess it’d be weird if you couldn’t see thestrals while owning a farm.”

“I guess,” Lux relies as she puts the drawings back into the box. She hands the second box to Kai. “Do you want to open it?

Kai takes it and looks at it as if it was about to explode; “I- Sure, yeah, okay.”

The box also holds a stack of drawings as well as pictures and trinkets. Lux quickly realizes that she was right assuming this was the “Kai box”. The drawings are portraits of Kai as well as sketches of his hands, his legs, and other body parts, like his eyes, his mouth, or his arms. There are also some letters that Lux doesn’t look at but sees Kai reading intently, sometimes smiling, sometimes on the verge of crying. The photos are moving pictures of just Kai or Kai and Gabriel, laughing, playing, sleeping, kissing, or posing. 

Lux feels a pang in her chest as she realizes that she has never seen her best friend like this, so… carefree. She feels a pang of hurt and jealousy at the fact that he hid this part of himself from her but she tries to quiet it. She knows he had his reasons and she can even easily guess some of them. What matters is that with Kai, he looks happy. It’s weird to see him like that but it isn’t weird to see him like that _with Kai._ Which _is_ weird. She doesn’t know if it’s because she has known about them for a few months now or just because it simply makes sense. 

Among the trinkets, there are tickets stubs from various attractions in London, as well as some badly drawn sketches and a Quidditch medal that Lux assumes belong to Kai. Finally, there’s a smaller jewelry box, and when Lux opens it, she discovers a ring inside it, with a K on it surrounded by a crest.

“K as in… Kai?” Lux asks, stunned.

“K as in Keita,” Kai replies with a roll of eyes. “That’s the Keita family ring. Gabriel wears it all the time. Didn’t you notice?”

“Gabe never wears rings,” Lux replies, frowning in confusion.

“Not on his fingers,” Kai says as if she was thick. “Around his neck. His uncle Alpha gave it to him.”

“His uncle is named Alpha?” Lux asks, looking amused.

“His mother is named Reine,” Kai replies, as if that explains everything.

“And?” Lux asks, not sure she understands what he means.

Kai stares at Lux as if trying to see if she is joking. “Reine as in Queen, in French?” 

“That’s what it means?” Lux replies, sounding genuinely surprised. “I thought it was a weird spelling of Rain!”

“Oh my god, Lux,” Kai replies, laughing. “Gabriel never taught you French?”

Lux shakes her head. “No,” she says before adding with a smirk, “I guess he was too busy teaching you other French stuff... like kissing,” she adds, showing one of the pictures as evidence when Kai stares at her.

Kai stares at her some more then starts laughing, loudly, pushing her hand away. “That was terrible!”

“Stop, I’m hilarious,” Lux replies, pushing back and laughing with him.

“What are you guys doing here?” a voice suddenly calls out from the door.

They both startle and look toward the door, freezing when they see Theo glaring at them. He stands there for a few seconds before he realizes who they are and suddenly, he looks more embarrassed than angry. “Oh, Kai. Astor. I didn’t know it was you guys… I… Yeah… see you later,” he mumbles clumsily before pivoting and practically running away. 

Lux stares at where he was standing, mere seconds ago and sighs. “So that’s definitely not going to help the rumours.”

Kai shakes his head as he starts putting the items back in the box. “We’re way past that point, Lux, I’m afraid.”


	20. December 31, 1997 - 122 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not my favourite chapter but a necessary one to continue my favourite arch.

Kingsley wakes up late that morning. In fact, it’s so late that he wonders if it could even be considered as such. Morning. He struggled to fall asleep last night, tossing and turning next to Valentina until he eventually gave up and left the room so as not to wake her up.

Much like the rest of the Order, Kingsley is growing more and more anxious as he sees the world shifting and he finds himself completely helpless. They meet up as often as possible, making plans, trying to think of ways to thwart the growing power of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named over the country, but nothing they come up with seems good enough.  _ There’s always Harry _ , they keep coming back to, uselessly, ashamedly, feeling like they are failing Dumbledore despite Albus being the one to tell them to trust and rely on Harry, no matter what.

Kingsley is more skeptical than others regarding that particular order, by the way. Of course, he wouldn’t dare to say it out loud, no matter how much he suspects some of them silently agree with him. Officially, Harry is their only hope and Kingsley nods approvingly every time someone brings it up, claiming loud and clear that he is sure Harry will defeat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named in the end. This is the editorial line of  _ Potterwatch _ and Kingsley doesn’t intend on going against it.

But.

But time is passing by and they have no news, no sign that Harry is even doing anything. Kingsley and Bill and Selene have all tried to grill Ron but he stays annoyingly loyal, although they have all noticed that he seems to resent Harry a bit. Kingsley doesn’t take it as a good sign. If even Harry’s strongest supporter and ally starts doubting him, they might not be able to rely on him for much longer, if they even still can today, that is. 

Kingsley would much rather focus on what Valentina and Julian could achieve while working undercover at the Ministry. He might be biased but he truly thinks that the best way to stop the Death Eaters’ reign of terror is from the inside. What he needs to do now is convince the rest of the Order that he is right. And to do so, he needs to tell the Order  _ about _ Valentina and Julian. He’s not sure either side is quite ready for that. There might be something he can do in the meantime, however. He just needs to convince Valentina to agree to it, first. Which isn’t the easier step of the process.

Kingsley makes his way to the basement when he sees that the bottom floor of the house is completely empty. The basement is where Valentina set up a training room for Julian and they’ve spent more time than not there since Kingsley moved in. Valentina said that she wanted to prepare him in case he fucked up and Julian has wholeheartedly agreed, fucking up being probably one of his main concerns these days.

Julian and Valentina look exhausted when Kingsley gets there, Valentina casting colorful balls that stain Julian’s shirt and pants when they hit him and Julian trying to shield himself and counter-attack.

Kingsley watches them in silence at first, and he can’t help noticing how much their relationship has changed since he first saw them together.

Kingsley met Julian for the first time at the Ministry, but before that, he had already heard about him from Nyx and Selene, but also, and mostly, from Valentina. 

The first time she talked to Kingsley about Julian was around Christmas the year before. Valentina was particularly affected by her isolation at that time and Kingsley, who had sensed it, invited her over to try and comfort her. Valentina had ended up in tears, talking about how much she missed Selene and her other friends.

“I don’t regret my decision, you know,” she said, probably to reassure him, once her sobbing calmed down. “And I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to break down like that in front of you but it’s just… It gets hard sometimes, having no one to really talk to. I know what I’m doing is important, and I’m proud to be working for Dumbledore like that. It’s an  _ honour _ . But sometimes, I just… I kinda wish I could have one day, just one day back to normal when I could still talk to my friends and family without them thinking I’ve joined the Dark Side or whatever.”

“The Dark Side?” Kingsley repeated, lacking the reference which prompted Valentina to explain it to him and talk to him about Julian. She described him as a fun and smart kid, someone daring, who wasn’t scared to speak his mind.

“He’s a muggle-born you know, and the way he approaches it is unlike any muggle-born I have ever met. Even Selene and Anya… They don’t talk about their… ‘muggle-borness’ much. The moment they learned they were witches, it’s like they left it all behind, like they were only ever just that, witches, raised in the wrong world. Julian isn’t like that. He embraces his muggle origins and tries very hard to continue to evolve in both worlds. Before meeting him, I didn’t even know it was even possible. Selene and Anya have always made it seem as if once you knew about the magical world, there was no going back to the muggle world, like you had to choose But Julian doesn’t see things like that. I once asked him what he wanted to do after Hogwarts and he said he didn’t really know, that there were careers in both the magical world and the muggle world that interested him. The way he views magic… I don’t know, it always fascinated me.”

The first time Kingsley met Julian, he didn’t really see the kid Valentina described that night. Instead, he saw a young man, already affected by the war, as petulant and stubborn as the other DA kids he had met before him. That day, and several times after that, Kingsley often thought back on Valentina’s words and his heart ached at the thought that Julian’s future had been reduced to a different kind of question mark and that his fun and sunny personality had been dimed by the war.

Right now, the sentiment that the Julian Valentina first told him about and the Julian he met are two fundamentally different people is reinforced by the sheer fierceness of Julian’s expression and movements as he trains. He isn’t holding anything back, avoiding blows and counter-attacking right away, doing it over and over again, with the distinct knowledge that, one day, this could be for real.

It saddens Kingsley to see yet another kid already in such position and to know that many other of his classmates are on the same page, no matter what side they are on. 

One thought that does appear to be a silver lining in all of this is the fact that Valentina’s relationship with Julian seems to have been mended. Julian has been much kinder to her since he learned about her true heritage and it isn’t that rare now to see them laugh and joke around. In these moments Kingsley finally catches a glimpse of Valentina’s Julian and it warms Kingsley’s heart to know that Valentina,  _ almost _ , finally got her day back to normal.

“You here to coach us, King?” Julian calls out, bringing Kingsley back down to Earth.

“Uh?” Kingsley asks absent-mindedly, still a little lost in his thoughts. “Oh, no. No, no. I’m here to talk to you actually.” He must look at Valentina when he says that because Julian seems to misunderstand what he means.

“Oh,” Julian lets out, grabbing a towel and wiping his face with it. “I’ll leave you two, then. I’m going to grab something to eat, real quick.”

“No,” Kingsley replies quickly, looking between Valentina and Julian. “I need to talk to the both of you.”

Valentina and Julian glance at each other, looking confused and apprehensive.

“What’s up?” Valentina asks, looking back at Kingsley, still frowning. 

Kingsley didn’t really plan on having such an important discussion like this but he figures he might as well say it now before he has to leave.

“I wanted to run something by you,” he starts, toying with his wand. If he wants this to work, he has to fight Valentina’s paranoia with Julian’s desperate hope. “I’m heading to Bill’s in a few minutes and I… er… You know that Selene, Nyx, Anya, and Gabriel are over there?”

“You want us to come with you?” Julian asks right away, always so predictable in his reactions.

“No,” Kingsley replies, watching Julian’s face collapse, as expected. “Or at least not now,” he goes on, “but maybe later?”

“What do you mean?” Valentina asks, looking scared and offended, as Julian grins in surprise.

“I want to tell the Order about you,” Kingsley replies, pleading her with his eyes.

“Kingsley…” Valentina sighs, looking away, ready to leave. Kingsley sees that and takes a step forward, desperate to have her hear him out.

“No, Val, please, listen. We’re grabbing at loose ends with Harry and I personally think that you and Julian are our best chance at the moment. If I tell the Order about you, I’m sure they’ll agree.”

“Kingsley, we can’t,” Valentina says, leaving no room for argument. “We talked about this already.  _ Many _ times. It’s too dangerous. I’m having lunch with Death Eaters every other day, how do you expect me to survive if the entire Order knows I’m playing a role?”

“Val,” Julian steps in. “I think we should do it.”

“Of course you do,” Valentina replies with a roll of eyes.

“No, it’s not… It’s not me missing my friends here,” Julian counters. “I just think… It would be better for everyone if they knew. Kingsley can’t keep hiding here, telling the Order about what we hear but unable to tell them how he knows. In times like this, we need to know who we can trust and right now, Kingsley risks to lose the trust the others have in him. And yes, okay, maybe it’s a bit me missing my friends but I know for a fact that you do too.”

Valentina shakes her head, as impervious as Kingsley dreaded. “It’s easy for us to say all of this. We know everything about the Order. We know exactly how we feel about them. But them, the Order, we have no idea how they would feel if they knew what we did, what  _ I _ did. You think Selene would just welcome me with open arms after everything? You think Nyx will be happy to know we knew what the school was planning to do to his sister and we did absolutely nothing?”

Julian goes to reply but Kingsley stops him with a hand on his shoulder. “That’s why I don’t want to tell the Order right away,” he explains. “But I want to prepare the field.”

“How so?” Valentina asks coldly. She doesn’t look like she cares much about the answer.

“I want to tell Selene,” Kingsley replies, already prepared for everything Valentina will have to say.

Valentina snorts and looks away. “No,” she says firmly at the same time as Julian says, “Okay,” eagerly.

“Julian,” Valentina sighs. “It’s no.” She goes to grab her towel but Julian isn’t going down without a fight.

“Oi! I have a say in this, right? I’m as much part of this as you,” he says fiercely, taking both Valentina and Kingsley by surprise. “I know you had your reason for keeping it a secret all these years but the world as we know now is different. Kingsley is right. We’re completely lost right now, we’re not making any progress and You-Know-Who is clearly winning the war. We have to do something and the more we are, the better. If Kingsley tells Selene about you  _ and _ me, she’ll be more likely to listen.”

Kingsley bounces back from that, trying to catch Valentina’s eyes. “Val, please. I know you’re scared but I really think that if I tell them about what you did for Julian, they’ll agree to meet you.”

Valentina bites her lips and turns around, both fist on her forehead. “Because I have to meet them now?”

“Yes!” Kingsley replies, his voice imploring. “We can only move forward if you talk to them. You came back for Julian and he forgave you. What makes you think it’ll be different with them?”

Valentina looks between Julian and Kingsley, hands on her hips, on the verge of tears.

“He’s got a point, you know,” Julian says, taking a step forward, grabbing Valentina’s hands. “Val, listen. I missed you so much and I know for a fact that they do too. Your meeting with Lux has nothing to do with this. It was a different context. She  _ couldn’t  _ know we were on the same side, but Selene? She’ll be  _ proud  _ to know everything you did. I forgave you. The others will too.”

Kingsley stays silent, holding out his breath as he stares at Valentina. After a bit, eyes shining with her tears, she nods.

“Okay.”

“Okay?” Kingsley repeats, a hopeful smile stretching his lips.

“Yeah, okay. Tell them.”

***

Kingsley doesn’t wait to run to Bill’s once he has Valentina’s agreement, slightly scared that she’ll change her mind. He’s relieved his plan of using Julian worked and thankful for the way the boy helped him. He’s been very protective of Valentina since she told him everything and even more so after they saw Lux and Kingsley was scared he would take her side.

The house is full when Kingsley gets there. In addition to Bill, Fleur, Selene, Anya, Nyx, and Gabriel, Tonks, Lupin, Fred, George, Charlie, Lee Jordan, Oliver Wood, Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, and Katie Bell are also there. The mood is joyful, everyone having gathered to celebrate New Year’s Eve at the Shell Cottage. Kingsley waits before bringing up Valentina and Julian. He prefers to let everyone enjoy their night together, one night away from the war and the resistance.

It’s after midnight when he finally decides to just go for it. Bill, Fleur, Lupin, Tonks, Selene, and Nyx are on one side of the room, talking about Tonks’s pregnancy, while the others are playing drinking games. Anya is in the middle of teaching everyone how to play beer pong when Kingsley comes up to them, asking Anya and Gabriel to follow him upstairs. 

“What’s wrong?” Gabriel asks, looking at Katie and Lee in confusion.

“Nothing,” Kingsley replies, trying to reassure him. “I just… I need to talk to you about something.”

Fearing this has to do with Lux, Anya and Gabriel follow him quietly upstairs. They all go into one of the bedrooms, where Nyx and Selene are already waiting for them. Once everyone is settled, they all look at Kingsley expectantly, waiting for the bomb to drop.

“What’s up?” Nyx asks after a while when the silence becomes weird and almost unbearable.

“I don’t really know where to start,” Kingsley admits, wringing his hands. 

Anya watches him anxiously. Before the wedding, Anya would never have considered herself to be a nervous person. Now however, things have changed.  _ A lot _ . And seeing someone like Kingsley, usually so composed and calm, now on the verge of breaking down is everything but reassuring. “Just say it, Kingsley. You’re killing us here.”

Kingsley looks at each of them then down. “I know where Julian is.”

He blurts it out very quickly and at first, he isn’t sure the group heard him correctly. Gabriel stands perfectly still, his face unreadable, eyes fixed on a colorful cushion. Nyx seems to be thinking of something to say, eyes and lips moving around, lost in thoughts. Selene is breathing deeply, a hand on her heart, the other one grasping the nearest furniture. As for Anya… Anya practically jumps on him. 

“What? Where? Where  _ is _ he? Is he okay?”

“ _ Yes _ ,” Kingsley lets out, almost desperately, touched by the emotions shown by the group. He almost feels bad for using Julian like that now, understanding properly, for the first time, how much they all care about each other. “Yes, he is okay. He is doing…  _ so _ well,” he goes on reassuring them, smiling at Anya, then at the others. Selene and Nyx relax tremendously, Gabriel not so much.

“Where is he?” Anya asks again, still a bit on edge.

Kingsley bites his lip. This is the tricky part and he can’t fuck it up. “That’s the thing,” he says after a bit, eyebrows drawn together. “I… He’s… He’s with Valentina.”

The name sounds like a gunshot in the small room. Anya opens her mouth to say something but no sound comes out of it, and Gabriel looks up abruptly, eyes boring into Kingsley. Nyx crosses his arms over his chest and looks at Selene, as she stares at Kingsley.

“He’s  _ what _ ?”

Unconsciously, Kingsley takes a step back, Selene looking so lethal, Kingsley is scared for a very brief moment that she is about to attack him.

“What are you talking about?” Nyx asks, putting himself between his girlfriend and Kingsley, trying to defuse the tension despite also looking quite on edge.

“Valentina isn’t who you think she is,” Kingsley tries, looking more at Selene than Nyx, voice pleading. “She… She’s part of the Order too,” he tries, wishing Julian could be here to help him along.

Selene snorts and Anya shakes her head. “Kingsley... haven’t you learned anything from Snape?”

“This isn’t the same,” Kingsley replies fiercely. “Valentina’s been spying for Dumbledore for two years. If she really was like Snape, do you think I would be here talking to you?”

“How do you expect us to believe that?” Selene asks, incredulous.

“I know it’s hard. Julian struggled too, but-”

“Why is he with her?” Gabriel cuts him off, all eyes falling on him.

“Valentina asked him to come with her when the muggle-born decree was passed,” Kingsley replies.

“And he went?” Anya asks, sneering. “Willingly?”

“ _ Yes, _ ” Kingsley replies. “Julian is fine, I promise you. He and Valentina have made up and I’m sure you will too once you hear her out.”

“You want us to meet  _ her _ ?” Selene asks, eyes wide open. Kingsley has to hold back his smile at the fact that she is reacting exactly like Valentina did.

“I want you to meet  _ them _ ,” he corrects her, hoping Julian will make them agree.

Anya grimaces at that. “So that’s it? Julian is what? A carrot to force us to accept?”

Kingsley looks at Anya but doesn’t reply, instead turning toward Nyx. “Nyx. You trust the Alperts, right?”

Nyx frowns. “What do they have to do with anything?”

Kingsley goes to reply but Gabriel beats him to it. “They’re the same family. Valentina is Miranda’s niece.”

Anya looks slightly surprised by this reveal but pushes through it. “I don’t see how that changes anything. Families can have diverging opinions. Look at Gabriel.”

Gabriel nods along. “Besides Valentina and Miranda haven’t spoken for a couple of years now.”

“Actually they saw each other at Christmas. At the Notts,” Kingsley corrects. He expected it to be hard but didn’t think he would have to bring in the  _ Lux _ argument.

“The Alperts were invited?” Gabriel asks, his mask falling off a little.

Kingsley nods. “The Alperts, the Astors, and Valentina.”

Anya is the one to snort, this time, shaking her head a little. “You’re really using Julian, Lux, and Kai as bait right now, Kingsley?”

“I’m just letting you know that Valentina has info you might be interested in,” Kingsley retorts, sitting down on the bed. “This isn’t…” he starts then stops, struggling to find the right words. “I want you to trust her but I know this can’t happen overnight. But I think that if you would just hear her out, hear her and  _ Julian _ out, you might actually change your mind.”

The group remains silent. They all look at each other, each of them struggling between their curiosity and resent. 

“I don’t know, Kingsley, but we’ll think about it, alright?” Nyx concludes, the others giving him approving nods.

Kingsley smiles at him, then the others. “That’s all I’m asking.”

He stands up and goes to leave but Anya stops him, her voice breaking a little. “Kingsley, wait. Julian. Can you… Can you tell him we miss him?”

Kingsley turns back to look at her and nods, smiling sadly. “Of course.”


	21. January 4, 1998 - 118 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woops sorry completely forgot to update because i was hella sick and hella tired this weekend but here (finally) comes chapter 21, focused on Lux, as she gets back to Hogwarts after the Christmas break!

Platform 9¾ is crowded when Lux and Kai get there. Kids are hugging, parents are chatting, but there is still this gloomy cloud that hangs invisible over everyone. The train is leaving soon but the students don’t seem as eager to go back to Hogwarts as usual.

Getting up was hard for everyone this morning, even for Lux. Usually, home isn’t really what she could call the happiest place on Earth but she spent her last few days of holiday break at the Alperts, and these days, it doesn’t really get much better than that. Miranda and William are working hard and thus weren’t much home while Lux was there but it wasn’t so bad. Kai and Lux still had an amazing time, baking, playing more muggle games, and talking. After opening up some more about Valentina and Ezra, Lux felt that she deserved the same kind of honesty from Kai, which resulted in him finally,  _ finally _ , telling her about how he and Gabriel had gotten together.

It was fun finally hearing about it, learning about a new side of Gabriel she had never even suspected existed and seeing Kai blush and smile tenderly. However, once left alone, Lux felt once more this ball of dread form in her stomach, caused by the knowledge that Gabriel, her very best friend in the world, had willingly hidden a huge part of himself, a huge chunk of his life, for a whole year, if not more. And the worst part was that Lux had no idea why. This train of thought lead her to another, much darker one, and Lux ended up panicking over the fact that she might never see him again.

“Lux!”

The voice that drags her away from her thoughts is Ezra’s, her friend calling out as he and Ernie rush toward her, smiling. They, however, both stop in their tracks and grimace when they see that Kai is standing next to her.

“Hey!” Lux greets them brightly, waving at Ernie before hugging Ezra close.

Ezra seems to relax a little in her arms but his eyes still bore into Kai, who smirks and looks away.

When they pull back, Kai steps forward, hands in his pocket. “Well, I guess I’m going to go find my own friends. I’ll catch you later, babe!” he says with a teasing smile before winking at Lux, who rolls her eyes. “Cohen, MacMillan.” He nods at the two of them then turns around and pushes his cart toward the head of the train.

“Babe?” Ernie mouths at no one in particular.

“You spent Christmas with him?” Ezra asks Lux numbly, his eyes fixed on Kai as he shakes hands with Theo and Blaise.

“What?” Lux asks, also looking at Kai, smiling a little. She turns back to Ezra, frowning. “No, of course not,” she says before adding, “At least, not really. I only went to the Alperts’ after Christmas. But we did see each other at the Notts’,” she adds lowly, glancing around.

“You saw the Notts?” Ezra exclaims, wincing when people start throwing him weird looks.

“ _ Yeah _ ,” Lux replies pointedly. “We’ll talk inside, okay?” she tells him obviously, gesturing toward a group of student near them with her head. 

Ezra agrees and the three of them make their way toward the train, in search of the others. They find Neville inside an empty compartment at the end of the train, looking anxious as he studies the faces of all the students that walk by.

“Hey, Neville,” Lux greets him as she gets inside the compartment, making Neville startle. “You okay?” she asks with a concerned frown.

“Yeah I-” he starts replying before shaking his head. “Actually, no. Not really. Has anyone one of you seen Luna?”

Ernie, Ezra, and Lux look at each other before shaking their heads. 

“Why?” Ezra asks, sitting next to Neville.

“Ginny and I haven’t heard from her since we left Hogwarts. We wrote to her, tried to contact her via the coin, but nothing. Ginny is looking for her in the other compartments but I don’t know… I have a bad feeling.”

“Do you think she ran away?” Ernie asks, looking sick.

“I think she got attacked,” Neville replies sombrely. 

No one says anything. They let the weight of Neville’s words settle, speechless. Lux is the first one to speak up, looking through the window with a frown. “I don’t get it,” she admits.

“What don’t you get?” Neville asks.

“Why they would attack Luna,” Lux explains, looking at each of the boys. “I was literally  _ inside _ the lions’ den at Christmas and nothing happened to me. Why would they go after Luna? Why not Ginny or you, or  _ me _ ? I was right there?”

“Do you wish it had been you?” Ernie asks, raising a judging eyebrow at her.

“No. Of course not,” she replies but it doesn’t seem to convince the others. “I’m just confused.”

“You shouldn’t. You’re part of the Alpert family, now, no?” Ezra says, sneering. “It has to grant you some kind of immunity.”

“Part of the Alpert family?” Neville repeats at the same time as Lux says, “What kind of rubbish are you on about?”

“Lux and Alpert are dating,” Ernie explains to a confused Neville.

“Merlin…” Lux sighs out, looking annoyed, pressing her finger between her eyes. “We are  _ not _ dating. Kai was only joking when he called me babe,” she explains with a roll of eyes.

“You two looked pretty close,” Ezra points out, raising both of his hands in defense and looking bitter, which for some reason annoys Lux more than anything.

“Yeah, we are. So what?” she bites back. “And what if we  _ are _ ? Dating, I mean? What does it change?”

Ezra opens his mouth to reply then closes it quickly, looking away, his arms crossed over his chest.

Next to them, Ernie and Neville look at each other, feeling awkward.

They stay in silence for a few minutes before Seamus, Hannah, and Ginny all burst through the sliding door, looking anxious.

“We couldn’t find Luna anywhere,” Ginny informs them, all but collapsing next to Ernie. “I think you’re right, Neville. They must have taken her,” she says sombrely, expecting everyone to react accordingly. 

However, the news doesn’t really have the impact Ginny expected and she slowly notices the tension between Lux and Ezra and the discomfort of Ernie and Neville. “What’s going on?” she asks, frowning.

“Lux is friends with Alpert and Ezra doesn’t like it,” Ernie explains. Ezra glares at him and throws up a V. “Oi! What? I’m just telling the truth.”

“I see…” Ginny lets out slowly, looking at girls. “Well, as much as I can’t stand that smarmy asshole, I think Luna going missing is a bigger issue so how about we focus on that?”

“I couldn’t agree more,” Lux replies with a fake smile thrown toward Ezra. “When is the last time you guys saw her?”

“In the train,” Neville replies. “Luna looked pretty anxious the whole ride and practically as soon as we arrived, she jumped out of the train.”

“I think she was worried about her dad,” Ginny explains. “He’s been writing a lot of pro-Harry, anti-Ministry stuff in the Quibbler lately. Luna was scared that they would go after him because of that.”

“Wait,” Hannah stops all of them. “When is the last time anyone of you has read the Quibbler?”

“I don’t-” Ezra starts replying but Ginny cuts him off.

“Before the break,” she says, looking horrified. “The last number I received was before the break. Nothing has been published since then.”

“What does that mean?” Ernie asks.

“It means that they made him stop,” Hannah replies.

“What?” Ernie looks terrified. “You think they went after Luna and her father?”

Seamus nods. “Maybe. It does sound like it at least.”

Seamus’s reply is met by a deafening silence, the group slowly growing horrified at what that could mean.

“Should we do something?” Ezra asks.

“Like what?” Lux replies, her tone biting. “Go look for her? Ezra, please, we’re on our way to school.”

“I know that!” Ezra says back, tone matching, glaring at her now. “But we can’t really pretend everything is fine because it clearly isn’t! No matter what happened to Luna, she’s not  _ here _ . She’s one of us. We have to do something. Neville?” he says then, turning toward him.

As one, the rest of the group also looks at Neville, waiting for him to say something.

Neville looks back at them, his eyes wide open and his mouth gaping a little, feeling put on the spot.

“I… I might have an idea but… I don’t know…”

“What is it?” Ernie asks.

“Maybe we could change our messages a bit? Let the Carrows know we’re onto them.”

“What? Like ‘We know what you did to Luna and her father’?” Ginny asks, not looking convinced.

“Yeah,” Neville replies obviously. “Exactly like that. We have to let them know we aren’t scared of them-”

“They already know that,” Lux replies, confidently.

“They literally locked you two up in the dungeons, Lux,” Seamus replies with a roll of eyes. “I doubt they know you’re not scared of them.”

“We got locked up because we stood up to them. And I’ll do it again in a heartbeat. And I’m sure Neville will too.”

“It’s just an idea,” Neville says, raising both hands. “We don’t have to do it.”

“No, let’s do it,” Hannah says with a nod. “Let’s pollute their walls with all kinds of messages like that and continue standing up to them in class. If the school sees us doing, the rest might follow.”

***

Lux doesn’t talk to Ezra again until the night starts to fall. The rest of the compartment is fast asleep, and Ginny and Seamus are out, hunting for more sweats. Ezra is reading and Lux keeps opening and closing her mouth, looking for the right way to say this. Eventually, she can’t take it anymore and decides to just go with it before Ginny and Seamus come back.

“Ezra,” she says, louder than necessary, making Neville snore a little and Hannah shift. Wincing, she repeats, more quietly, “Ezra.”

“What is it, Lux?” Ezra asks, slightly bored, without looking up from his book.

“I have something else to tell you about the Notts’ Christmas Party,” she whispers, her eyes on Neville and Hannah before looking back at Ezra.

“Lux,” Ezra sighs, shutting his book and finally looking at her.

“It’s not about Kai,” Lux says pointedly, shuffling forward to get closer to him.

“Oh well. If it’s not about  _ Kai _ , then let’s hear it.”

Lux frowns at the way he tries to imitate her. “Can you stop that? Kai is my friend. Nothing more. But we are close and I promise you, he’s not who you think he is.”

Ezra stares at her, looks like he’s about to say something more but decides against it at the last second. “What is it, Lux?”

Lux studies Ezra’s face carefully before dropping the bomb. “I saw Valentina.”

Lux knows Ezra by heart. The minute she left Valentina, Kai, and that weird Julien guy behind, that night, she was only thinking about him, about the fact that she  _ had _ to tell him, and about how he would react. Lux knows Ezra by heart and she knew then, exactly how he would react. And of course, Ezra never disappoints, especially not Lux.

His jaw drops slightly but besides that, he barely moves. The real reaction is in his eyes. They seem to freeze and lose their focus as if Ezra’s brain has to restart to process the news. Lux feels a bit bad for having to mention Valentina to Ezra right now, piling up another issue, opening up another wound, on top of everything else, but she couldn’t not tell him and now was as good as any other time.

“What?” Ezra asks after a bit, his eyes fixed on Lux once more, his jaw set and his eyebrows slightly drawn together. 

“She was at the Notts’ party,” Lux explains. “She seemed pretty chummy with them.”

“Of course she was,” Ezra mumbles, looking sad, or at least sadder than before when he thought Lux and Kai were dating.

While Julian was close to Valentina, Ezra was closer. He and Valentina developed a bond deeper than any other inside their broken family. They understood each other in a way the others only wished they could. Lux never got why. It never really felt like they were that similar; Valentina, the aloof attention-seeker who knows everything about anything, and Ezra, the optimist puppy with a heart too big for his own good. And yet, they bounded. Lux would never admit it but she was jealous of the way Ezra looked at Valentina at first, used to being the only recipient of that look. It passed quickly though when she realized that Ezra had found in Valentina the mother figure he never had. Valentina hated to be called that, “Ezra’s mother figure,” but in reality, everyone knew that she felt honored and cherished this title.

And now…

Now, Valentina has let herself get swept off by the Ministry and works with the Notts while Ezra is trying as much as he can to fight off the Carrows. 

“What happened?” Ezra asks, understanding that Lux didn’t just catch a glimpse of Valentina at the party.

“She came up to Kai and me during the party. She asked me about you,” Lux tells Ezra, looking sorry. “She seemed to worry.”

“What did you tell her?” 

Lux shrugs, looking offended, not by Ezra, but by Valentina. “The truth. That you were doing alright. That you didn’t need her to worry about you.”

Ezra smiles. Fierce is Lux’s default mode. She doesn’t know how to be mild or neutral. It becomes even worse when she feels like she needs to defend something or someone. He can’t imagine that that conversation was a very pleasant one. 

“Did she ask about Julian, too?”

“No,” Lux replies and it seems like she’s grateful for that. “I would have killed her if she had.” 

Ezra smiles again.  _ Default mode… _

“She did ask about Nova, though,” Lux adds, as an afterthought.

This really takes Ezra aback. “Nova? Why?” Valentina never really liked Nova. It’s a secret for no one, not even Nova herself.

Lux shrugs again. “I don’t know. Maybe it was her way of asking about Julian?” she offers, but neither of them believe it. “Or maybe she wanted to see where she stood? Maybe she’s going to contact her?”

“That would be insane,” Ezra remarks and Lux nods.

“I know. But these are insane times,” Lux says back. She sighs, her mind remembering another piece of information she’s not sure she should tell Ezra but that she really wants to talk about. “Ezra… there’s something else.”

Ezra raises a curious eyebrow at her and makes a “go on” gesture.

“Did you know that Valentina and Kai are related? She’s his cousin.”

Ezra stares at Lux, probably waiting for her to reveal she’s joking but when it’s clear that she is being serious, he starts laughing. “And you trust him? Lux…”

“No, listen to me!” Lux protests, grabbing at Ezra’s knee to force him to do so. “I swear to you, Kai would never,  _ ever _ , join the Notts.”

Ezra stares at Lux’s hands on his knee, his lip stuck between his teeth. He slowly looks up and the dark, intense look he gives her makes Lux feel naked. “Why?”

Lux sighs, knowing there’s little chance Ezra will believe her now. “I can’t tell you.”

“Lux…”

“I can’t tell you because it’s not up to me to tell you!” Lux is practically pleading with him, her fingers digging into Ezra’s knee. “But trust me, alright?” Then she adds, “Please?”

Ezra shakes his head a little but eventually nods. “Alright.”

Silence settles again in the compartment and but it feels too heavy. Lux hates that things don’t seem okay with Ezra. They never fight. Ever. So right now, Lux desperately wants to fix the awkwardness between them.

“Do you think that’s true?” she asks him when she can’t take the silence anymore, deciding to change the subject. “That the Death Eaters really went after Luna and her father?”

Ezra shrugs but he looks thankful for the subject change. He doesn’t like fighting with Lux either. “I don’t know. Maybe. Did you hear anything at the Notts?”

Lux shakes her head. “No. Then again, I spent most of the evening in Gabriel’s bedroom.”

“Why?” Ezra asks although it’s pretty easy to guess.

“I wanted to feel close to him, I guess.”

“You miss him.” It’s not a question.

Lux still answers it. “Of course. Especially right now,” she admits. “I feel… disconnected to him. I thought I knew him by heart but I’ve learned… stuff recently. About him. And I wonder why I didn’t know sooner, why he never told me. And the fact that I can’t ask him directly… it makes everything worse.”

Ezra has a bitter comment on the tip of his tongue, about friends lying and keeping stuff from each other. But he doesn’t say anything. He might be jealous and bitter but he’s not Lux. He’s not petty. So instead he takes one of her hands, still on his knee, and laces their fingers together. Lux looks up at him and smiles wetly. Ezra doesn’t say anything.

***

When they finally reach the castle, the students go straight for the Great Hall to have a late dinner before heading back to their common rooms.

Lux tries not to be too obvious, because Ezra isn’t leaving her side and because the DA keeps giving her suspicious look, but she keeps searching for Kai in the corridor, then at the Slytherin table. He must be doing the same because as soon as she lifts up her head, her eyes meet his, and Kai smiles a little before looking back at his friends.

“Why aren’t you sitting with Astor?” Theo asks Kai as he serves himself a huge plate of chicken and potatoes, probably having noticed. 

“Why would he sits with Astor?” Pansy asks, disgusted, sitting so close to Kai that she’s practically sitting on his lap.

“They’re dating,” Theo replies. “I caught them making out in my cousin’s bedroom at Christmas.” This time it’s him who looks disgusted.

Pansy drops her hand on the table so hard that it makes her plate and Kai’s shake.

“We weren’t making out!” Kai protests, now feeling himself a little sick at imagining himself and Lux kissing, on Gabriel’s bed of all places. “We were just talking,” he adds. He doesn’t deny the fact that they aren’t dating however. He was only teasing, earlier, when he called Lux “babe” in front of Cohen, and he knows that the rumours aren’t really helping Lux to get better with her friends but if a fake relationship with Lux is what it takes to keep Pansy away, then he’s willing to play along.

“And what were you talking about?” Blaise asks, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively at Kai.

Kai freezes. He can’t really tell the truth, can’t really say, “well we were talking about Gabriel and how much we miss him.” So instead, he goes with it, he plays along, he doesn’t deny the rumour. “Shut up,” he says, pushing his friend’s laughing face away while Theo makes another disgusted face and Pansy starts stabbing her steak.

On the other side of the room, at the Gryffindor table, Seamus, Neville, Lux, Ginny, Parvati, and Lavender huddle together at the end of the table. They have a meaningless talk about their holidays, not wanting to say too much in public about Luna and their suspicions.

Lavender watches Ginny closely as she stares at her watch while pushing around her food on her plate. “Not hungry?”

“Hard to be when you spent the whole train ride eating garbage,” Lux comments before Ginny can reply.

“It’s not that,” Ginny replies, although she did eat more than enough sweats on the train. “It’s… There’s something I need to show you tonight. I’m hoping the feast will end soon. They did promise...” she trails off, her eyes still on her watch.

“Who promised what?” Seamus asks.

“Fred and George,” Ginny replies pointedly and Lux wants to kick herself.

“ _ Of course _ ,” she all but exclaims. While she stressed over Valentina and Ezra, and everyone, Lux didn’t think once about the fact that Ginny was going home to her parents, two Order members, and thus, that she would probably learn a bit about what was going on.

“What?” Seamus asks now, sounding both confused and annoyed at being confused.

“Ginny went home, Seamus,” Lux says slowly, making wide eyes at him, hoping he’ll get the message. “She went home to her  _ parents _ .”

“And?”

Ginny rolls her eyes. “My parents who told me about their  _ friends _ .”

“Their friends…” Seamus repeats, everyone staring at him for not understanding. “Oh! You mean…  _ Oh! _ ”

“Yeah,” Ginny says with a half-smile before shaking her head. “So let’s wait until we’re back in the common room, alright?”

Seamus raises a thumb up and continues eating his mashed potatoes.

The feast might be the longest feast Lux has ever attended. When Snape finally announces the end, the group is on their feet in a matter of seconds and doesn’t even wait for the other Gryffindors. They run up the stairs laughing as the portraits loudly complain about their behavior.

Lux can barely breathe as she laughs, tears starting to run down her cheeks, having no idea what’s happening. Deep down, she thinks that maybe this is just the first time in a while that she’s had a proper laugh and the feeling is making her hysterical. Around her, her friends look the same and she feels as if a hand has tightened around her heart at the thought that perhaps, for just a brief moment, they all just remembered that they were really just a bunch of kids.

They arrive in front of the Fat Lady still giggling like idiots, panting and stumbling. The Fat Lady looks at them disdainfully and Lux is scared she’s going to refuse them access to the Common Room.

“Rawgabbit,” Ginny says, out of breath, leaning on Neville who’s drying his tears.

The Fat Lady raises an eyebrow at them but opens up, letting them through.

_ Rawgabbit _ , Lux thinks as she follows them inside.  _ A person who likes to gossip confidentially about matters that they know nothing about _ . Lux doubts McGonagall is the one who picked this password…

“Upstairs,” Ginny says without stopping, making a beeline for the boy’s dorm.

The five of them follow her, and as soon as the door closes behind Lux, Seamus turns toward Ginny. “What is it?”

Ginny doesn’t answer though and starts going through the boys’ stuff, making a triumphant noise when she finds a radio in Seamus’s trunk.

“Ginny, what’s going on?” Neville asks as Ginny puts the radio in the middle of the room and starts staring at her watch again.

Ginny finally looks up and takes a deep breath, as if bracing herself for what she is about to say.

“So,” she starts, “I have something to tell you guys and it’s… huge. I think. I… This is massive and I need you guys to listen to me before you start cutting in, alright?” Ginny looks straight at Lux who pretends to zip her mouth and throw away a key. “While I was home, I saw Fred, George, and Lee. They made something. A radio.” She pauses, looking at everyone’s reaction. Most of them listen intently, Neville frowns, and Lux has her eyes wide open, probably to compensate the fact that she can’t open her mouth. “It’s a secret radio they created for the resistance. They want me to spread the word around Hogwarts.” She pauses again then makes a motion with her hand. “You guys can talk now.”

“They made a radio?”

“Did you see any Order member?”

“Are they doing a show tonight?”

“Who knows about this?”

“They made a  _ radio? _ ”

Ginny laughs a little then jumps when she notices the time. “Shit,” she curses, starting to tap the radio with her wand, looking for the right channel, and mumbling “Harry.”

They all look at her as if she was a unicorn, Neville and Lux going so far as holding their breath, as Lavender asks, “Ginny, what are you doing?”

And then…

“- _ still trying to get settled but we’re a work in progress so don’t be too hard on us, alright? Anyway, welcome to  _ Potterwatch,  _ my name is River and, as always, I’ll be your host tonight. I want to welcome any new listeners. A birdie told me the show should have reached an old castle we all used to love by now. _ ”

Lux’s breath catches as she hears Lee talking for the first time in a while. Around her, the room is dead silent, except for the radio, as the show goes on.

“ _ Tonight, we will be joined by our favourite members: Royal, who will, as always, give out precious advice on how to deal with everything that’s been happening -” _

_ “Good evening,”  _ a man replies in a deep voice that Lux guesses belongs to Kingsley, her brother’s boss.

“ _ \- Romulus, who will update us on what might be happening with our favourite scar-bearing wizard and his friends -” _

“ _ Hello, everyone,”  _ their former teacher Remus Lupin answers.

“-  _ And a newcomer, our dear friend Rhythm, who has some good news for everyone. _ ”

“ _ Hiya! Glad to be here. _ ”

Lux practically chokes on her spit when she hears Anya’s voice, loud and clear, impossible to mistake with anyone else’s.

“ _ Let’s start with you, Rhythm _ ,” Lee goes on. “ _ We had to pause the show during the holidays but I heard that you had some big news to share to start the new year.” _

_ “Indeed I do, River,”  _ Anya replies, chuckling. “ _ You all have of course heard about the rumour that auror Selene Caulfield and her sister, Anya, had kidnapped Nyx Astor and Gabriel Nott. Well, I have it on good authority that this rumour is obviously false and that Selene, Anya, Nyx, and Gabriel are all well. They had to run and hide due to the Death Eaters chasing them but I want to let their friends and family - the well-intentioned ones - that they have found a safe place and are currently out of danger.” _

Lux lets Anya’s words wash over her as tears start to fall down her cheeks once more. Ginny looks at her and nods encouragingly while Seamus wraps an arm around her shoulders.

“ _ In the same way, I also want to reassure Julian Rose’s friends. Rumour has it that Julian, a young muggle-born who was supposed to start his seventh year at Hogwarts last September, has found himself a safe house and has been hiding there since the beginning of the muggle-born hunt. We are currently trying to contact him and hope to confirm his well-being by the end of the month. _ ”

This time, it’s Seamus’s breath that hitches as he tightens his hold on Lux who is full-on crying now. 

“ _ Thank you, Rhythm,” _ River takes over cheerfully. _ “Now let’s hear from Royal who has some news about the state of our dear old castle. _ ”

“ _ Yes, River, thank you. I indeed recently heard from a trustworthy source that the Death Eaters have, as we feared, taken full control of Hogwarts. The Carrow twins are handling all the disciplinary aspects and we hear that they have already changed the types of punishment a student can receive. With the Nott law, the Carrows are now allowed to use verbal and physical violence on students, and the dungeons have been reopened. My source informed us that two students have already been sentenced with a full week of detention in the dungeons. _ ”

“ _ So what do you advise, Royal?”  _ Lee prompts Kingsley.

“ _ Precaution, as always. I understand that the situation at Hogwarts right now is critical but students shouldn’t risk their lives right now. Wanting to defend the castle and to fight against the system is a noble cause, of course, but this is too risky and students should try to trust in their teachers whom we all know are doing their best to protect everyone at school.” _

As Kingsley and Lupin keep on talking about why acting against the Carrows is not a good idea, the whole group sort of pulls back from the show, looking at each other with wide eyes.

“Kingsley is insane if he thinks we’re just going to sit back and wait while the Order do all the work,” Ginny says, looking offended.

“Very rich of him to tell us to trust the adults when it’s clear that literally  _ nothing _ is happening. He, himself, is on the run,” Seamus states, looking furious. “Right now, it feels more like we’re the only one who can  _ actually _ do something against You-Know-Who.”

“Typical,” Lux sighs out, rolling her eyes. “The Order used to be the only fighting force against You-Know-Who so now that we’re here, they feel threatened. In the meantime, they should try and not forget that the last two battles against You-Know-Who happened because Harry and the DA were there…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise I won't forget to update on sunday, especially because next chapter is a big one....


	22. January 6, 1998 - 116 days before the Battle.

Gabriel sits on his and Anya’s bed at the Shell Cottage, facing the window. Outside, the night is already pitch dark and the sky full of stars. He missed this while he was in Manchester, at the Caulfields. Back at Merlin’s Vale, the night sky was one of Gabriel’s favourite thing and he can’t count the number of times he and Lux have laid outside of either of their houses to stare at it. Now, these nights feel like a lifetime ago. Everything was so much simpler back then. Or at least that’s how it looks like today. The sight of the night sky is a huge relief however. It helps ease his mind, which he is very grateful for, given that the thought of seeing Julian soon is making him nervous.

In the end, Nyx managed to convince Selene to give Kingsley and Valentina a chance. It was a hard process, Selene sure that Nyx only trusted Kingsley because he was desperate to hear something, anything really, about Lux, but she eventually gave in. Since that night, on New Year’s Eve, seeing Julian has become this unreachable goal that Gabriel is still sure is never going to happen, no matter what. Despite Selene’s agreement, despite Kingsley’s plan, despite the fact that the meeting is planned for  _ tonight _ , Gabriel still expects something to go wrong.

“I have an odd feeling of  _ déjà vu _ .”

Gabriel turns around to see Anya waiting for him on the threshold, a small smile on her lips. She’s wearing her Hufflepuff winter cape, which makes him smile back. Lux and him have an on-going bet on how long it’s going to take each of them to let go of their houses colour after they leave Hogwarts. It took Gabriel about two hours. For Anya, it has been six months and counting.

“You do?” Gabriel asks, humouring Anya, knowing she’s about to tease him.

“Yeah. You, staring outside a window at night, lost in thought, getting ready for something  _ big _ to happen… It brings back memories...” she explains, a bittersweet gleam in her eyes.

Right away, Anya’s reply conjures up said memories inside Gabriel’s mind and he can only share her feeling of nostalgia. That night was before the wedding, before they ran away, before Gabriel realized that he had never properly said goodbye to Lux and Kai and that he probably wouldn’t get the chance ever again. If Gabriel could go back in time, that’s probably when he would go.

Anya must sense the wave of sadness hitting him because she shakes her head a little and says, more conversationally, “You ready?”

Gabriel is thankful for her capacity to make any situation less sad and awkward. He follows her lead, standing up and walking over to her. “Yeah, let’s go.”

Downstairs, Nyx is talking to Bill and Fleur while Selene paces around them, fidgeting her wand. When Anya and Gabriel enter the room, they all look up and Selene stops in her track.

“Ready?” Nyx is the one to ask.

Gabriel nods. Anya sighs and shrugs as if to say, “Would it matter if we weren’t?”

“You?” she asks instead. 

“Let’s go before I change my mind,” Selene replies before Nyx can say anything, already making her way toward the door.

“Be careful, alright?” Fleur tells Nyx pointedly.

“Don’t worry, Fleur,” Anya replies. “I’ll take care of them.” She briefly wraps an arm around each man and squeezes them, winking at Fleur.

Gabriel smiles at Bill when he passes in front of him and then the four of them are outside, walking toward the magical edge to Disapparate. They form a circle, Selene reaching in the middle to grab their hands, but Nyx ignores it.

“Before we go, I want to go over everything once more,” he says instead. “I want all of you to be on your guard at any moment. I know we agreed to trust Kingsley but we can’t be so sure with Valentina. She might pull a Snape at the last minute. If anything happens, no matter what it is, I want you to Disapparate right back here, alright?” When the three of them nod, Nyx goes on. “Our question for Valentina will be ‘What was the password of the Gryffindor Common Room the first night you got drunk?’ The answer is ‘Fopdoodle.’ The question for Julian will be ‘How many games of Wizard chess have you won against Gabriel?’ The answer is ‘Zero’. Got it?”

“Yes,” Anya is the only one to reply, despite being the one to come up with that last question. Selene and Gabriel both nod.

“We go straight to the point once we’re there,” Nyx goes on. “We ask about Julian, Lux, and Kai, and then we try to convince Julian to come back with us. We don’t spend more than an hour there. Once the hour is up, we go straight back here. No matter what,” Nyx says again, looking intently at each of them. “Ready?” he asks once he’s satisfied.

“Let’s go, Nyx,” Selene replies, looking bored. “I already feel like going back inside.”

Nyx nods and finally grabs Selene’s hand. Anya and Gabriel do the same and they all pivot.

The group Apparates in a field, a few meters away from Valentina’s former house. This meeting place wasn’t their first choice but Kingsley accurately argued that it was the safest place they all knew. The group moves as one through the night, hurrying toward the house, Nyx looking more nervous than any of them. Gabriel is tense but not particularly scared. Selene looks like she dreads it but they all know it’s because she doesn’t want to face Valentina, not because of any of the potential threats. As for Anya, she looks like she’s about to start running  _ toward  _ the house, probably very excited at the thought of seeing Julian after all these months. 

The house looks haunted when they get there. The windows are all opened and the curtains move with the wind. The main room is still full of furniture as if Valentina had abandoned the house in a hurry, and three dark figures stand near the huge fire mantel. The figures turn around when the group enters the room, their feet resonating on the cold, hard floor. It’s dark so they can’t really see well but it’s easy to distinguish which figure is who. Kingsley is the tallest of the group, looking massive compared to the other two small frames. Valentina has a dark hood over her long black hair and is wearing a long black cloak over her dress. As for Julian, he’s the smallest of the group, wearing a black wool coat, and he looks as excited as Anya, playing with his wand, barely able to stand still.

Nyx, Selene, Gabriel, and Anya stop a few meters away from Kingsley, Valentina, and Julian, the two groups staring down at each other, neither of them wanting to take the first step.

After a few awkward seconds, Kingsley must realize that he’s the one in charge because he steps forward, smiling reassuringly at Nyx and Selene.

“Good evening. I’m glad you came,” he tells them. “I assume you want to check their identities.

Selene nods then stares at Valentina, looking like she’s trying to kill her just with her eyes. “What was the password of the Gryffindor Common Room the first night you got drunk?”

Valentina looks surprised by the question and smiles a little, Julian huffing out a laugh next to her. “Fopdoodle,” she replies confidently as if she was herself challenging Selene to do something.

Nyx nods then turns toward Julian. Before he can ask, however, Anya takes a step forward, her eyes fixated on Julian’s. “How many times did you beat Gabriel at Wizard Chess?”

Julian huffs out another surprised laugh then shakes his head. “I never did. This guy beat me to it every single time.”

Gabriel feels the tension finally leave him and risks a small smile at his friend while Anya lets out a small, choked out noise. Then, she runs.

“Oh, Julian!”

Anya tackles Julian with a fierce hug that he returns right away, burying his head on her neck.

“You have no idea,” Julian starts, his voice muffled and slightly broken, “how much I’ve missed you.”

“And me you, Jules,” Anya replies, pulling back. She has tears in her eyes and she keeps touching Julian’s arms and shoulders as if to check that he really is here. “We were so worried!”

Gabriel finally steps forward as well, then, looking at Julian as if he’s about to reveal this is all a trap.

“Hey, man,” Gabriel says, extending his hand.

Julian looks at it then makes an offended sound. “You’re kidding, right? Come here, idiot.” And then, Julian grabs Gabriel’s hand and pulls him into a fierce hug that Gabriel is all too pleased to return.

While the three friends reunite, Selene, Nyx, Valentina, and Kingsley stand aside, looking at them. They all look lovingly at the trio, except for Selene who is still suspicious of all of this. 

“How are you, Julian?” she asks, sticking to the plan.  _ Check their identities. Question them about Julian, Lux, and Kai. Convince Julian to go home with us. Go home. _

Julian seems surprised by the question as he pulls back from Gabriel, but nods. “I’m alright,” he says, giving Valentina a look the others can’t really identify, then he looks at Selene. “Why?”

“Just… Curious,” she replies. “We were really worried about you, you know. With everything that happened with the muggle-born decree and the snatchers… We had no way to contact you or know that you were doing alright…”

“But I was,” Julian replies, smiling some more. “I really was doing alright. Valentina probably saved my life when she came to get me that morning. They announced your disappearance and that bloody decree and I had no idea. Valentina is the one who told me everything. She helped me hide my family and then she took me in.”

Next to Nyx, Valentina looks touched by Julian’s earnest reply.

“But what have you been up to since August?” Nyx now asks, also following his plan.

Julian looks at Valentina again and when she gives him a little nod, he replies, matter-of-fact, “I helped Valentina spy on the Ministry. She took me with her every time she met a Ministry member and pretended I was her assistant. You have lovely parents, by the way, Gabe.”

“You saw my parents?” Gabriel asks, sounding almost shy.

Julian snorts before replying. “Oh yeah. Big time. Your dad keeps asking Val and me to promote his ‘new Hogwarts’,” he explains, making air quotes. “And, of course, we saw your mother at Christmas.”

Unconsciously, Anya, Nyx, Selene, and Gabriel all nod at the keyword.  _ Christmas. Time for part 3 of the plan _ .

“Not just her, we heard,” Anya prompts him.

Julian looks at Anya, then at Nyx and Gabriel, his eyes shining with deep understanding. “Not just her, no.”

“How are they?” Anya asks eagerly, knowing Gabriel wouldn’t.

“Good. At least, I think. Pretty chummy,” he adds, looking at Gabriel with a small smile. “And to think you were scared Lux wouldn’t approve. They stayed together the whole night, joined at the hip. They were smiling, joking even. Lux fought with Val and Kai went to comfort her, that sort of thing. It was really sweet and weird if you ask me.”

“Lux fought with Val?” Nyx asks, looking at Valentina.

“Yeah,” Valentina confirms, stepping forward. “Julian drinks Polyjuice to stay hidden so Lux had no idea he was there but we wanted to know how Ezra, Nova, and the others were doing so I went to talk to her, hoping she would tell us. She did, in her own way, I guess. They’re all doing fine, apparently. Of course, it’s hard for them at Hogwarts, with the Carrows and Snape but they’re okay. Lux didn’t like that I ask, though, and she started yelling at me. I can’t really blame her. I try very hard to make it seem like I’m on the Death Eaters side. I would have been scared if she hadn’t bought it.”

“Did she tell you what they were doing to her at Hogwarts?” Nyx asks then, his jaw clenched.

Julian and Valentina look at each other, knowing the answer but sure Nyx isn’t going to like it. “Yeah,” Valentina breathes out, biting her lips. “Yeah, she did. They… Lux told us that the Carrow had locked her up in the dungeons.”

Nyx closes his eyes and nods, taking a deep breath. “That’s what we thought. Lee talked about it on  _ Potterwatch _ .”

“What about Kai?” Gabriel finally manages to ask, quickly shutting his mouth when all the eyes land on him, as if embarrassed of asking.

“He’s okay,” Julian replies. “He seems almost better than ever, actually. I never saw him like that. He looked… relaxed, with Lux.”

“Never could have guessed that Lux and Alpert would become friends,” Anya says then, looking at Gabriel. “Nova can’t like that.”

“I wouldn’t know,” Julian replies, looking down and Anya winces at her lack of tact.

“Sorry.”

“It’s fine, I don’t-”

Julian doesn’t get to finish his sentence. There’s a small, vibrating sound, and then, an explosion. They all dive, trying to avoid the blast.

The house practically collapses on itself. 

With the force of the explosion, Valentina and Julian, closer to the windows, are propelled outside. Valentina gets the air knocked out of her chest when she lands on the terrace, hitting her head hard against the wooden floor.

She very briefly loses consciousness and struggles getting up when she gains it back, her ears whistling, and her head turning. “Julian!” she calls out, unable to see him, her vision blurry through her tears and blood spilling from her forehead. “Julian!”

“I’m here,” Julian replies with difficulty, standing up and grabbing her hand to reassure her. “I’m here. You okay? You’re bleeding!” he says, horrified. He tries to look at her wound but Valentina ignores him, tightening her hold around his hand.

“You have your wand?” she asks, trying to focus.

“Wh- Yeah,” Julian replies, raising it to show it to Valentina. “It’s here. Why?” he asks, a bit confused, more worried by Valentina’s bleeding forehead. “What was that?”

Valentina ignores his question, her brain thinking a mile a minute. She has no idea who exactly caused the explosion but one thing is sure; they can’t stay to find out. Her former house is in ruins and she can’t see either of their friends but she has to believe they’re going to be okay. Right now, her priority is Julian and their cover. “I’m sorry,” she tells Julian sincerely before wrapping her arms around him.

“Wh-  _ No! _ ” Julian starts then yells when he realizes what’s happening. He tries to wiggle out of her hold but Valentina is already Disapparating.

Julian is still protesting when the forest near Valentina’s safe house materializes in front of them. “No, no, no, no, no-  _ GO BACK! _ ” he yells, finally freeing himself for her arms. He reaches for his wand but realizes he no longer has it. “Where’s my wand?” he spits angrily, turning to glare at Valentina.

She is sat on the ground, looking pale, chest heaving her forehead still bleeding heavily. “We can’t go back,” she replies quietly, avoiding Julian’s eyes.

“Valentina. Where is my wand?” Julian repeats, enunciating each syllable clearly.

“I have it,” she tells him, finally looking up, “but I’m not giving it back to you until I’m sure you won’t do anything stupid.”

“Anything  _ stupid _ ?” Julian repeats, still furious. “Valentina! They are our  _ friends.  _ That’s  _ Gabriel and Anya _ we’ve left behind. Nyx, Selene,  _ Kingsley _ . We have to go back!”

“We can’t,” Valentina replies with a sigh, slowly standing up, pressing a hand over her cut.

“What are you talking about?” Julian yells out. “Of course we can! They’re going to need our help!”

“Julian,” Valentina says softly, standing up and grabbing both of his shoulders. “Please calm down.”

“ _ No _ !” he replies, choked up. “We can’t just leave them behind! Val! We got  _ attacked _ !”

“Exactly,” Valentina says, trying to calm him down. “We got attacked. By Death Eaters. They couldn’t see us.”

“They couldn’t see  _ you _ , you mean!” Julian replies angrily, trying to free himself. “Let me  _ go _ !” he yells, pushing Valentina away.

“Julian…”

“Give me my wand, Valentina.”

“No.”

“You really care more about your cover than your friends?” Julian stares at her with a hint of disgust in his eyes that hasn’t been here for a few months now.

“They’ll be fine,” she replies, but they both know that she’s lying, that she has no way to know that for sure. “I couldn’t stay there, Julian. We talked about this with Kingsley. My cover, what we do. It’s more important than anything else at the moment.”

“You are such a  _ coward _ ,” Julian spits, half crying, half yelling, tears running down his cheeks. “They’re going to think we tricked them.”

“I know.” Valentina is so calm it drives Julian even more insane. She looks like she has already given up on their friends and what is making Julian want to go back - the fact that they might be in grave danger, if not dead - is exactly what makes her want to stay here.

“I can’t believe you,” Julian says, horrified, the fight leaving him all at once. “You… You think it’s already too late, don’t you?”

“Julian. They blew up the house. If we had stayed there, then we  _ all _ would have died. At least, with our cover still secure, we can continue our work, beat them from the inside. Avenge them.”

“ _ Avenge  _ th _ - _ You-” Julian stares at her, mouth agape before stating angrily, “You disgust me.” With that, he turns around and walks back toward the house.

***

Anya groans. Her entire body is throbbing with pain and she feels a hot liquid - blood, most likely - running down her neck and left arm. She coughs a little from the dust and tries to move away from the wreckage. “Everyone alright?” she asks weakly.

“Yeah,” Gabriel replies a few feet away from her.

“I’m fine!” Selene calls out a bit further away.

“Guys, remember the plan.  _ Go! _ ” Nyx calls out, his voice muffled.

“Where are Julian and Valentina?” Kingsley asks, not too far from Anya.

Anya manages to stand up and watches in horror as she discovers the state of the house. A huge part of it is missing, blown out with the explosion, and they are all underneath it. Selene and Kingsley are both almost out, but Gabriel and Nyx seem completely stuck under the collapsed walls and ceiling. Anya turns around to look for Valentina and Julian but all she sees are bits of glass, dust, and traces of blood.

“They left,” she says lowly, in realization, before turning back toward the others. “They left!” she screams.

“I fucking knew it,” Selene retorts, coming toward her sister. “It was a fucking  _ trap _ !”

“No!” Kingsley protests from where he’s still trying to free himself. “It wasn’t, I promise,” he says pleadingly, moving more quickly to get rid of the stones above him.

“Selene, Anya,  _ go _ ,” Nyx is still yelling but the two sisters ignore him.

“I can’t believe she would stoop so low,” Selene mumbles, pacing the floor.

“Selene, calm down, please. Where is your wand?” Anya asks her sister, grabbing her hands to force her to look at her.

“Yes, Selene. Where is your wand?”

Both sisters startle when they hear the unknown voice. They turn around just in time to watch a group of wizards wearing dark cloaks appear in the gaping hole that used to be Valentina’s living room. 

“ _ Lumos _ ,” a man with long, white hair spells, before looking at them. The other men around him do the same, the man clearly in charge here. “Good evening,” he says calmly, a small, gentle smile on his lips as he stares at the frightened sisters. “Where are Gabriel Nott and Nyx Astor?”

Neither Anya nor Selene reply. Kingsley finally frees himself and walks in front of the girls, raising both hands in surrender. “Corban.”

“Kingsley,” Yaxley replies, looking pleased to see him. “What a nice surprise! We were worried. You completely disappeared since that day in your office.”

“Corban, what is going on?” Kingsley asks, probably hoping to win them some time. Only Anya appears to have her wand, Nyx and Gabriel are stuck under the wreckage, completely defenceless, and in front of them stand about ten known or suspected Death Eaters.

“Well, you tell me, Kingsley,” Yaxley replies. “You’re here, in Valentina Weger’s old house, with two wanted mudbloods and most likely Nott and Astor. So please enlighten me.  _ What _ is going on?”

Selene stares at the group, able to identify a few faces. Next to Corban Yaxley stands Vincent, the Notts’ butler. She also spots Selwyn, Travers, and Rodolphus Lestrange. 

“Where are Nott and Astor, Kingsley?” Yaxley asks, this time firmly.

Kingsley doesn’t reply but Anya briefly glances at the wreckage despite herself. Yaxley notices it and smirks, gesturing toward his men. “Clear the place.”

Three of them, including Vincent, step forward and flick their wands at the wreckage. It disappears instantly, revealing two weakened Nyx and Gabriel, covered in dust and blood. As soon as he’s free from the stones, Gabriel turns on his stomach and starts coughing violently. Next to him, Nyx pats the ground for his wand but finds it under the foot of a smirking Selwyn. Selwyn bends down and grabs him, holding both of his arms in his back as soon as he is up. 

“Your highness!” Rodolphus exclaims when he sees Gabriel, coming toward him and forcing him to stand up. Gabriel wobbles a little and leans against Rodolphus despite himself, his right leg visibly badly injured. He has cuts on his face that are still bleeding, and what seems to be a huge shard of glass in his thigh. “Your parents will be so pleased to see you,” he tells him, looking content. “They were worried sick.”

Anya holds her wand numbly, feeling all of the fight leave her body at once. Vincent gets all of the wands on the floor then walks over to her, grabbing hers without a fight.

“I’m glad you understood there was no need to resist us,” Yaxley says, accepting the wands Vincent gives him. “You are very clearly overpowered and the night is already unpleasant enough as it is. I heard some of your friends had run away. That’s a shame... Not the bravest of the bunch, I assume? Oh well, it doesn’t matter too much, since the two people I was looking for are here,” he says, grinning at Gabriel and Nyx.

Nyx struggles and manages to free himself from Selwyn then, but Yaxley stops him immediately, sending a blocking spell in his direction. Nyx topples over and falls, hitting the ground hard.

“Come on, boy,” Yaxley says, annoyed. “We don’t have time for any nonsense. We have your friends at our mercy. Do you really want their lives to end like this?”

Nyx groans but stops resisting when Selwyn comes to pick him up again.

“Good boy,” Yaxley says. “Gentlemen?” he says then, and three men step out of the group and go to Anya, Selene, and Kingsley, holding them firmly at wand point. “Now, Selwyn. Remember the orders? Please try not to miss. I feel like we’re dealing with wannabe heroes tonight.” 

Selwyn nods and forces Nyx to kneel, raising his wand in front of his face.

Selene starts panicking then, trying to wriggle out of Travers’s hold. “What are you doing?” she asks, horrified.

“Shhhhh,” Travers whispers in her ear, covering Selene’s mouth with his hand as she keeps struggling, tears running down her face.

“Yaxley. What are you doing?” Kingsley asks, falsely calm, unable to look at Nyx. Yaxley only smiles wickedly.

Next to them, Anya stands frozen, eyes on the ground, completely numb. In Rodolphus’s arms, Gabriel seems to have passed out.

“Guys,” Nyx calls out, understanding what’s happening. “Take care of Lux, alright?”

Selene yells out, still muffled, tears wetting her face, Travers struggling to hold her back.

“Selene,” Nyx says then, his voice breaking a little. “I love you.”

Yaxley rolls his eyes. “Alright, Selwyn. Now.”

Selwyn adjusts his wand and says, voice hard, “ _ Avada Kedavra _ .”

There’s a green flash. Selene manages to push Travers away and falls on her knees, screaming out in pain. Nyx’s body collapses on the ground, lifeless.

“Such a shame to spill pure blood like that...” Yaxley says conversationally as Selene bends over Nyx’s body, sobbing violently. “But what can you do? Business is business.”

Kingsley stares at Yaxley in shock, mouth opening and closing without producing any sound and Anya keeps standing still, eyes on the ground, even after the Death Eater holding her releases her. 

“Yaxley,” Rodolphus says, shaking Gabriel’s unconscious body a little. “I think the boy passed out.”

Yaxley turns back to look at Gabriel and nods. “Well,” he says clapping his hands, looking back at Kingsley. “You’re free to go.” He lets the wands fall on the ground and all at once, the Death Eaters Disapparate, taking Gabriel with them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It be like that sometimes ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯


	23. January 7, 1998 - 115 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updating late once more, I know, but life is crazy and between the strikes, work, and christmas shopping, i didn't really get to write much these days... This chapter has my favourite scene ever and is overall one of my favourite chapter. It's sort of what started it all and I hope you like it as much as I do...  
> It features mainly Lux, Ezra, and Kai, and is directly linked to the chapter before. From now on, know that basically every chapter left will deal with what happened last chapter so... be prepared ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

Kai wakes up late that morning. He has a free period before class and he decided to enjoy it to his maximum. The room is cold when he gets out of bed, winter having well settled around the castle, and Kai hurries to the bathroom to get ready.

Without surprise, the Great Hall is practically empty when he gets there. Most of the sixth years are there, as well as a few seventh years, including Blaise, Pansy, Cohen, and Longbottom. What strikes Kai immediately are the tear stains and long faces everyone seems to be wearing at the Gryffindor table. All of Lux’s friends are regrouped and Weasley is talking softly as they all bend over a copy of what has to be today’s  _ Daily Prophet _ . The buzz seems to have reached his own table because his friends are doing the same, Pansy looking as if the journal personally offended her.

Kai approaches the table and, as soon as she spots him, Pansy eagerly waves him over, looking as if she has some hot gossip to share.

“Kai! Look!”

She throws the  _ Daily Prophet _ at him and Kai is not ready, has no way to be ready, for what he’s about to read. As soon as his eyes land on the cover, it’s as if his whole world just stopped.

**NYX ASTOR AND GABRIEL NOTT**

**FOUND DEAD IN TORQUAY**

**SELENE AND ANYA CAULFIELD WANTED FOR MURDER**

At first, Kai can’t make sense of the words he has just read. He looks up from the journal and looks at Pansy as if she has more explanation.

“What?” he asks, his voice wobbly.

“Everyone is talking about it. Those mudbloods got caught and killed Gabriel and Astor to escape,” she replies, gesturing at the journal.

Kai stares at Pansy, a white noise ringing in his ear. “W-What?” He says again before going back to read the article.

> “ _ Missing since last August, Nyx Astor, auror, and Gabriel Nott, son of Reine Keita and Vinicius Nott, were found dead in an abandoned house in Torquay, Devonshire, the Ministry for Magic has announced this morning. The main suspects are none other than muggle-borns Selene and Anya Caulfield, on the run since Nott and Astor disappeared at the beginning of last August. The last time Nott and Astor were seen was at a wedding they were attending. Sources claim that the Caulfield sisters were also in attendance that day and Disapparated with the victims before the end of the party. Neither the Astors nor the Notts have wished to comment on this tragic event. Another suspect is none other than former auror Kingsley Shacklebolt, who betrayed the Ministry at the end of last year. If you have any information concerning the three suspects, the victims, or the investigation, please contact the Ministry. National funerals will be held — _ ” 

Kai can’t read more than that. He feels his hands start shaking as Pansy and Blaise keep talking, their words barely reaching him. He tries to make himself breathe but the more he tries, the less he can. Eventually, he just turns around, looking toward the Gryffindor table as if they’ll be able to make more sense of it than he can but they’re still talking confidentially to each other, Cohen looking like he’s about to explode.

“Kai. Kai!” Blaise calls out to him, forcing him to turn back around. “I know you’re looking for your girlfriend but Theo seemed pretty down when he heard the news. Maybe… Maybe you should go talk to him?”

Kai doesn’t really register what Blaise is telling him but still nods and leaves the Great Hall in a hurry. He lets his feet carry and guide him, his head turning. Somehow, he manages to get to an empty bathroom, where he collapses on the ground, no longer able to control himself. He crawls toward the nearest toilet and vomits.

This one action seems to push a button that activates Kai. He can breathe again and his head feels clearer but he suddenly feels a deep pain somewhere in his chest. It’s only after a few seconds, or maybe minutes, that he realizes he’s crying. He hopes no one will come and find him, doesn’t want anyone to see him like that, skin pale and moist, eyes and cheeks red and swollen, lips purple, throat on fire, and body violently shaking. He has no idea how he could explain it.

The world starts turning again then and Kai curls up on the floor, next to the toilet, letting himself go, crying so hard he doesn’t even hear the door opening and closing.

“Kai? Kai, you’re here? It’s Lux.”

Kai doesn’t hear her at first but when he notices that she’s here, sees her feet in front of him, it’s as if another button was pushed. He stands up, almost too quickly, his head spinning some more.

Lux seems to be in a similar state as him but right now, he can’t care.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” He spits, feeling a huge wave of anger take over as he looks at Lux. 

“I…” Lux starts, then stops, then starts again. “I wanted you to hear it from me, I… Ezra told me he saw you leave the Great Hall and I didn’t-”

“Shut up.” Kai is almost surprised that his voice comes out so firm and cold.

Lux seems surprised as well. “Kai?”

“Shut. The fuck. Up,” he says again, his eyes going dark. “What did you want me to hear from you, uh?” he asks, going to look at himself in the mirror, no longer standing the sight of Lux looking at him with pity. “That your BFFs had killed Gabe? Is that it? Well great, thanks for letting me know, you can go now.” Kai rests both of his hands on the sink and drops his head between his shoulder, trying to make everything stop turning.

“Selene and Anya didn’t-”

“I don’t fucking  _ care _ !” Kai snaps, turning around quickly to look at Lux. “Don’t you get it? It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t change  _ shit _ . He’s dead and it’s  _ their _ fault.” He pauses, then adds, “Of course they didn’t kill him; I’m not an idiot. But they might as well have. They’re the ones who got into his head with all these ideas of resistance. They  _ recruited _ him. And now he’s dead. And as far as I’m concerned, it’s their fault, your brother included.”

Kai sniffs when he’s done and tries to clean his face with his sleeve but it doesn’t do much, the tears still coming. Lux, in front of him, is crying too, quietly, almost silently, eyes fixed on him, pleading.

“Kai… Nyx and Selene… They never… Gabe knew what he was doing.”

“I don’t give a fuck about that, Lux,” Kai says, almost softly. “You, your family, your friends… You’re all responsible. And  _ he’s _ responsible, too. Potter. Your precious Chosen One who’s supposed to save us all. If that’s true, well, where is he now?” Kai pauses, looks down and shakes his head before looking back at Lux with accusatory eyes. “I lost him because of you all.”

“I lost him t-”

Lux stops immediately when Kai takes a step forward, standing very close to her now, and forcing up to look up. “No you didn’t. Don’t you dare say you fucking did. No one. No one lost him like I did. No one  _ loved  _ him like I did. So don’t you dare pretend you feel what I feel. He might have been your friend but he was my  _ life _ . And thanks to you, your brother, and your fucking resistance, I never got to tell him I loved him. Never even got to say goodbye.” Those last words come out choked out, more tears sliding down Kai’s cheeks.

Something seems to snap inside of Lux then and when she speaks up, her voice is no longer soft and weak, but rather hard and cold. “You don’t get to decide what I should or shouldn’t be feeling. I lost my brother and I lost my best friend, today. They were both killed by Death Eaters. They’re being used as propaganda for You-Know-Who.  _ That’s _ what matters. They’re making Selene and Anya out to be murderers and they’re pretending Nyx and Gabe were on their side and you yell at  _ me _ ? I wanted to talk to you, comfort you, because I knew you would be upset and you -”

“I don’t need your help!” Kai snaps, raising his voice. Outside, people might hear them but he can’t care. “Don’t you get it? You’re nothing to me. I don’t ever want to see you. I already told you that. How many times do I have to tell you until you get it? Don’t come near me again, Astor,” Kai all but spits before going out of the bathroom, leaving Lux behind, heartbroken.

Lux stays inside for a bit, to cry some more before putting herself back together and going back outside. When she leaves the room, she finds herself in front of Ezra, looking at her sadly.

“You found him?”

Lux nods, then goes to Ezra and falls into his arms, burying her face into his neck and crying some more.

“Shhhh,” Ezra whispers into her hair, patting her back and kissing the top of her head. “It’s alright, love, I’m here.”

Lux pulls back after a couple of seconds, wiping her tears with her sleeves and avoiding to look Ezra in the eyes.

“Hey,” Ezra says softly, taking her chin between his fingers to force her to look at him. “What’s going on? I heard you two scream, I don’t…” Ezra trails off, not sure how to finish. He’s jealous of Kai. There’s no need to hide that anymore. Everybody knows. And he really didn’t like the fact that Kai yelled at Lux like that, especially not today. But because of what happened, he’s not about to annoy Lux with that.

“Ezra…” Lux starts, looking around before looking back at him. “Kai… Kai never had feelings for me and I never had feelings for him.”

“Okay,” Ezra replies, not really believing her. “You’ve said that already.”

Lux bites her lower lip, realizing she’s not saying this well. “No, I mean… I’m not the one Kai has feelings for.”

“Okay,” Ezra says again, not really getting why she is telling him this. And then… “Oh, you mean… Kai likes Anya? Is that it?”

Lux starts laughing then, uncontrollably so and Ezra has no idea what to do or say.

“Lux…”

“Oh no, I’m sorry, Ezra, I just…” Lux pauses, dries her tears, and tries to calm down, holding her ribs. “I just didn’t expect that, sorry. Um… No, Anya isn’t the one Kai has feelings for.” And then she gives him a look and suddenly everything clicks into place.

“Oh, that’s… You mean Kai…”

“Kai is in love with Gabriel, yes. Or was, I guess,” she replies with another, small laugh that comes out bitterly. 

“Wow,” Ezra says, taking a step back. “Well, I didn’t see that coming…”

“I know,” Lux replies with a nod. “You have to keep this to yourself, though.”

“No, yeah, of course.” Ezra pauses then tries, “So that’s why you two bounded? Because of Gabriel?”

“Yeah,” Lux replies with a small smile. “Because we missed him.”

“Lux, I’m so sorry,” Ezra tells her, not knowing if he’s sorry for being a jealous idiot or because she just lost her best friend, her brother, and now Kai apparently, all in one day. Either way, Lux seems to understand because she goes to hug Ezra again.

“I know.”

“What did Madam Pomfrey say?” Ezra asks when they pull back.

“She said that I could take the day off. As if I needed her authorisation.”

Ezra smiles. “You want me to stay with you?” Around them, people are hurrying off to class, the bell having just rung. “I’m sure McGonagall wouldn’t mind.”

“Nah, go, I’ll be fine. Neville doesn’t have class, so I’m going to stay with him. And Snape wants to see me.”

“Snape?”

“Yeah. I assume he wants to continue his ‘Nyx was better than you’ speech.”

‘You’ll be careful, right?”

Lux shrugs. “They already killed my brother, they’re not going to kill me now. They have to wait and see if his murder scared me off.”

“Lux…”

“What do you think, Ezra?” Lux retorts. “Nyx was pureblood. He might have been part of the Order but they wouldn’t dare shed drops of pure blood; Yaxley said it himself last year. They killed Nyx because of me.”

“Lux, no-”

“Yes! Luna stood up to the Carrows and they took her and her father. I stood up to them and they killed my brother. That’s exactly what Nova said would happen.”

“You don’t believe that.”

“But I do,” Lux replies with a wet smile, shrugging a little. “But don’t worry, Ezra. Now I definitely don’t have anything left to lose so I don’t plan on leaving the DA. I’ll see you at the meeting tonight, alright?” She kisses his cheek then turns around and goes to Snape’s office.

Ezra watches her go then starts running up the stairs, toward his Transfiguration class. When he gets there, most of the rest of the class is there, waiting outside.

“What’s going on?” he asks Seamus while Nova and Adelia try to get his attention. He ignores them on purpose.

“McGonagall is going to be late,” Seamus replies. “How is Lux?”

“Good, considering… She has today off. Snape called her up in his office.”

“Really?” Padma replies, shocked by the news. “Why?”

Ezra shrugs but doesn’t say anything. His attention is grabbed by the group of Slytherins, a few meters away from them. Zabini, Parkinson, and Nott are all huddled together when Kai appears around the corner, going straight toward them. 

“Hey,” he says, hands in his pocket, looking fidgety and weak. Ezra never thought he would one day  _ feel _ for Alpert.

“Hey, man, where have you been?” Blaise asks, patting his shoulder. “You completely disappeared at breakfast. What happened?”

“Nothing, I just-”

“You broke up with Astor,” Pansy says without looking up from her nail file. “Everyone is talking about it.”

“People have a lot to talk about today, then,” Kai replies bitterly before wincing.

Pansy stops what she’s doing and raises an eyebrow, finally looking at him. “What’s up with you, grumpy?”

“Nothing, sorry,” he mumbles before turning toward Theo. “How are you, mate? You okay?”

Theo shrugs, looking at his shoes. “Yeah, it’s… it’s weird I guess, but I’m fine.”

“Don’t you have Charms, Alpert?” Nova suddenly calls out, arms crossed over her chest.

“What? You’re my secretary, now, Carlisle?” Kai asks, matching her stance.

“I’m just wondering what a sixth year is doing here, that’s all.”

Kai rolls his eyes. “Flitwick told us he would be late. I just stopped by to comfort my friend, that’s all.”

Nova snorts at that, looking back at her friends. “ _ Comfort _ . As if Nott ever cared about Gabriel.”

“Oh don’t start pretending you know who cares or not about Gabriel, alright, Carlisle?” Kai retorts, stepping forward to face Nova.

Ezra reacts immediately, sensing that this isn’t going to end well. He puts himself between the two of them, trying to nip the fight in its bud.

“Alright, we got it, you two hate each other but please, for Nyx and for Gabe, can we not start petty fights today?” he says, looking at Nova, then at Kai.

Kai stares at him and pushes his hand away.

“Who do you think you are, Cohen? Astor and I aren’t together so you don’t have to try and play nice with me, alright?”

“No, I know, I just thought…” Ezra starts and stops, biting his lips before he says anything he shouldn’t.

Kai glares at him but before he can say anything, McGonagall appears, looking distraught. “Good morning everyone, please go inside. We’ve already lost enough time for today. Alpert, aren’t you supposed to be in Charms?”

“Uh, yes, professor,” Kai replies, quickly turning around and running toward his class.

“Nott, I didn’t think I’d see you today,” McGonagall adds, looking genuinely surprised when she sees Theo next to the other Slytherins.

“I didn’t feel like staying by myself in the dungeons, professor,” Theo replies, and to Ezra’s surprise, he looks like he means it.

McGonagall gives him a sympathetic smile. “I understand. Well, come on, then,” she says more loudly, ushering her students inside, “we don’t have all day.”

The students enter the room and quietly head to their seats, Ezra seating with Seamus, Padma with Lavender, Adelia with Nova, Theo with Blaise, and leaving Pansy with Ash. 

“Now,” McGonagall starts once everyone is settled. “I want to start today’s class by talking a bit about last night's events. I don’t usually comment on the news but Gabriel Nott was still my student last year, he was your housemate, and in some cases, your close friend. The staff team had a meeting this morning to talk about how we would approach these two deaths with you. The Heads of Houses decided to set up office hours so that, if you needed to, you could come talk to us. Those hours are noted on all the notice boards of the school. Your other teachers, as well as the entire school staff, are also available, should you feel more comfortable talking them. Nott, Professor Slughorn wants to see you after class, this evening. Finnegan, please let Astor know that I also would like to talk to her at some point today.”

“Yes, Professor, of course,” Seamus replies.

They move on with the class, after that, focusing on trying to give each other moustaches and beards and modifying their hair. By the end of the class, Seamus is bold, Padma has a fro, and Ash’s hair is bright pink. 

“Thank you, everyone, that is all for today. Cohen, please stay behind, I need to talk to you.”

Ezra nods then turns toward Seamus who’s taking a long time to pack his stuff.

“Lavender and I are going to go see Lux,” Seamus says. “I’ll let you know how she’s doing, alright?”

“Yeah, thanks. I’ll see you tonight?”

“Of course, man.”

Seamus claps Ezra’s shoulder, then heads outside, meeting up with Padma and Lavender in front of the door.

Once they’re alone, McGonagall comes to see Ezra at his desk.

“How is Astor doing?”

“She’s devastated, of course,” Ezra replies, feeling and looking hopeless. “We don’t really know what to do, none of us have dealt with this kind of loss before.”

“Pardon me, Cohen, but I thought you had lost your mother.”

“Yeah, but I was a baby. I never knew her. Lux, however... Nyx was her everything. He was her brother but he was also her guardian… And on top of that, she lost Gabriel too…”

“Tell her to come see me, alright? And be there for her. If you need to skip a few classes today, please let me know. Especially if it’s a class with the Carrows, understood?”

“Yes, Professor. Thank you,” Ezra replies, remaining seated.

McGonagall notices it and frowns. “Is there something else you need to tell me?”

Ezra hesitates then says, “Actually, yes… Um, I’m not sure I’m supposed to tell you this because you’re faculty but you already made it clear that you knew we were behind the DA so… Professor? Lux thinks Nyx died because she went against the Carrows.”

“But the Caulfields killed Nyx Astor and Gabriel Nott.”

“Yes, but you don’t really believe that, do you?” Ezra replies.

“It’s not my place to tell you what I believe or not, Cohen,” McGonagall tells him. “What I can tell you is that the only person responsible for Nyx’s death is the person that killed him. Make sure that Astor knows that, alright?”

“Yes, Professor.”

McGonagall nods once, then goes back to her desk.

Ezra gets the memo and quickly packs his stuff leaving the room. When he reaches the corridor, however, he has the unpleasant surprise of running into Adelia and Nova.

“Good lord, don’t you people have your own business to mind?”

“We wanted to talk to you, you ignored us,” Adelia replies. “You left us no other choice than to corner you.”

“Or you could have taken the hint and left me the fuck alone,” Ezra replies, trying to push past them. Adelia, however, grabs his arm.

“Ezra, please.”

“What?” he asks angrily, crossing his arms over his chest.

“How is Lux?” Nova asks shyly.

“What do you think? She’s heartbroken. Her brother and her best friend were murdered and she has no idea what is going to happen with Anya and Selene.”

“I’m-” Nova starts saying but Ezra raises his hand to stop her.

“Listen. Whatever you have to say, I don’t want to hear it. I know you feel bad and I know you’re both sad too but frankly, right now, I really couldn’t care less. My priority is Lux. She is devastated and because of  _ you _ , she thinks Gabriel and Nyx died because of  _ her _ . So if you’ll excuse me,” he trails off, trying and this time succeeding to walk away, without looking back.

***

After talking to Ezra, Lux goes straight to Snape’s office. It’s like ripping off a plaster, she tells herself. First Kai, then Snape, and then she can bury herself under the covers of her bed and disappear forever.

The corridors are empty when she reaches the statue but it steps out of the way without her having to ask for anything. She quickly climbs the stairs and knocks on the door there. After the first knock, it opens up widely.

“Astor. Please take a seat,” Snape tells her, folding the parchment he was reading and setting it aside.

Lux has never been inside the Headmaster’s office before today and is taken aback by the sight of it. There are magical instruments everywhere, some she recognizes from Nyx’s office, some she doesn’t. The thought of Nyx makes her heart tightens so she tries to think of something else, her eyes landing on the different Headmasters’ portraits that seem to all be staring at her, except a few who are missing or sleeping. Her eyes linger on Dumbledore’s portrait, behind the desk, fast asleep, looking peaceful. The sight gives her a different kind of nausea.

“You wanted to see me, sir?” Lux asks as she sits in front of Snape.

“Indeed,” Snape replies. “I heard about your brother and on behalf of the school board and the staff, I want to offer you my most sincere condolences.”

Lux expected something like that. It doesn’t mean that she doesn’t feel deeply offended as soon as these words leave Snape’s mouth.

“Why do you care?” she asks before she can stop herself.

“I beg your pardon?” Snape asks, remaining calm but his eyes betraying his annoyance.

“Why do you care?” Lux repeats, reminding herself that she has nothing to lose. Around them, the portraits that are there and awake start expressing their outrage, mumbling and whispering with each other. “Nyx was part of the Order. I know that. You know that. He was part of the Order and you betrayed them, so…. Why do you care?”

The portraits get louder in their disapprobation but Snape raises his hand to shut them up. “I don’t know what you think you know, Astor, nor do I  _ care _ , as you put it. I am a busy man and I don’t have time for your pathetic conspiracies. Nyx Astor was a valued alumnus of this school and a gifted wizard. As Headmaster of Hogwarts and his former teacher, it is my  _ duty _ to present you my condolences. That is all.”

“What about Gabriel?” Lux asks, leaning back on her chair, showing no desire to leave that office.

“What?” Snape asks, now confused.

“Gabriel,” Lux repeats. “Gabriel Nott. What about him? Was he a valued alumnus and gifted wizard as well? I assume his family is devastated,” she says with the most cynical tone she can muster. “You do run in the same circles, right? You must have an idea.”

Lux thinks she has managed push Snape enough for him to snap but he remains calm and composed, taking her by surprise. “You knew Gabriel well?”

Lux nods, not feeling like lying or pushing some more. “He was my best friend.”

Something crosses Snape’s eyes before he replies, “The loss of the heir of the Keita family is a tragedy for the magical community worldwide,” he says, Lux looking at him, unimpressed. Snape shifts, then adds, “I think it might be wise for you to take a few days off. Perhaps, visit your family? I heard the funerals were going to be held later this week.”

Lux snorts at that. “No thanks. The little family I have left is right here.” She shakes a few bangs of hair out of her eyes and looks away, her eyes landing on Dumbledore again. “What’s up with him? He’s always like that?”

Snape looks back to see who she is talking about and seems to freeze when he realizes it’s Dumbledore. Lux smirks and looks at Snape expectantly when he turns back around.

“Not always, no,” he replies simply, not seeming too bothered by Lux’s insolence.

“What does he think about all of this?” Lux asks, genuinely curious, not necessarily provoking Snape. She doesn’t even know what she’s asking really, if she’s talking about Nyx and Gabriel, Snape, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, or all of them.

Snape doesn’t seem to mind either. “Portraits are only echos of their subjects, Astor. They aren’t ghosts. They aren’t  _ them _ .”

“So this isn’t him? This isn’t Dumbledore?”

Snape studies Lux’s face before replying. “No.”

Lux nods, her lips pursed, her eyes gazing absently behind Snape’s shoulder. “Good,” she says eventually. “I don’t think he’d like all of this too much.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not to reapeat myself but like... it /really/ be like that sometimes ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯


	24. January 8, 1998 - 114 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let's stop pretending I have a schedule for my updates havqahsfa I'm really busy these days you guys and I'm sorry. I don't even have time to work on the next chapters so basically, after this one, I only have chapter 25 ready to go. chapter 26, 27, and 28 are almost ready for beta reading (but not quite) and after that, who knows when the next ones will be ready (especially because I've been mostly thinking about part 2 and additional chapters I could write but not actual, needed chapters... oops
> 
> Anyway, here comes chapter 24 ! Still focused on Kai, Lux, and Ezra. The opening scene is one of my favorite and it literally came out of nowhere. Like it didn't exist until I wrote it down... Hope you enjoy!

When Kai leaves his dorm, he doesn’t expect to find anyone awake so late - or well, so early. He’s been tossing and turning in his bed for hours now, unable to fall asleep, and eventually, he just gave up. He pushed off his covers, wrapped himself in a Paris Princes throw blanket and went upstairs.

When he gets to the Common Room, it’s pitch black and dead silent aside from one of the lamps, casting a weak light on a dark figure.

“Theo?” Kai asks quietly, when he gets closer, surprised to see him there. He can’t see his face but he recognizes his tall and lean frame and his regal posture, no matter what.

“Kai?” Theo looks up as if startled from his thoughts. He’s also wrapped up in a throw - black, purple, and gold, the Keita family colours. He frowns slightly in confusion at the sight of Kai. “ What are you doing up so late?”

“Same as you,” Kai replies, before adding, when Theo seems even more confused, “Harper’s sick and his snores are driving me insane.”

“Ah,” Theo says with a knowing nod. “Got you. Want to sit with me? I sneaked some fire whiskey from the kitchen.” He pats the seat next to him and shows off a glass bottle with his other hand. 

Kai looks at it and starts laughing. It looks like the expensive brand Kai’s father drinks with his friends when they play cards. The bottle is still pretty full. “You have no idea how lovely that idea sounds right now.” He sits next to Theo and takes the bottle, taking a big swig of it.

“Wow, there,” Theo chuckles, making grabby hands toward the bottle as Kai coughs loudly. “I’m the one drowning my sorrow, remember?”

“Actually I don’t,” Kai replies more truthfully than necessary, once his coughing fit stops. Theo looks hurt by his comment and Kai has the decency to wince. “Sorry, mate, but I just… You never really cared about your cousin so I have to admit I’m a bit surprised by your reaction.”

Theo snorts and stares absent-mindedly at his hands. “Gabriel and I didn’t get along, true, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t love him. He was my family. He was my  _ blood _ .” he emphasizes, briefly looking at Kai and Kai nods, taking another swig of Fire Whiskey, this time much more easily.  _ Purebloods and their morals and values... _ It must be a British thing. The Alpert have been in England for a long time but they still remained profoundly German. As for the Wegers, they are Swiss through and through, and no one in Kai’s family ever talked about family and blood like  _ that _ . At least not that he is aware of. “Everyone is mourning him,” Theo goes on. “I received letters from  _ seven  _ different relatives today. Some I didn’t even know existed!” he adds, voice going high.

“I’m sorry,” Kai says and he’s almost surprised to find himself meaning it. “I didn’t realize-”

“It’s fine,” Theo cuts him off, waving his hand at him. “No one did. Pansy said it was a  _ good _ thing when she heard. She said he was more useful to the cause dead than alive, whatever that means.” He pauses, sighs, then adds. “She always saw him as a traitor.”

“Wasn’t he, though?” Kai asks, raising an eyebrow. He never himself considered Gabriel a  _ traitor _ , of course, but he knows the others did. It wasn’t like Gabriel got along with any of them or even agreed with their pureblood supremacists ideas. He doesn’t expect Theo to deny it so quickly, however. 

“No,” he says with a short laugh. “I mean, his taste in people was  _ questionable _ , sure, but he knew his place. He was a  _ Keita _ , for fuck sake!” That last sentence comes out bitterly. Theo grips the throw then smoothes it. “You know, Gabriel and I were practically raised as brothers. Of course, aunt Reine always made sure I remembered I was  _ inferior,  _ to him and to them, a mere subject of Gabriel’s court. She even gave me this stupid blanket for my last birthday...” Theo says, rolling his eyes. “But we were raised together. Our rooms were next to each other, we played together, we even saw my mum die together…” he sighs and reaches for the fire whiskey, taking three long gulps. He coughs a little then goes on. “We had this governess growing up. Her name was Melisandre Vane. Not pureblood but wizard born. We called her Missy. She used to teach us magical theory, wizard history, and Magizoology. Gabriel was the best, of course. I think I resented him for that. I think that’s why our relationship got so... bad. Aunt Reine would spend all day parading the estate like she was better than us and of course, her son was the fucking jewel on Merlin’s crown. I hate the Keitas,” Theo tells Kai quietly as if sharing a secret he’s scared the furniture will repeat. “You know, I grew up being told that I needed to marry a respectable pureblood girl but really, I never understood how that could work. Marrying two pureblood kids together is bound to be a disaster, no? Too much ego… Look at us and the Keitas. We hate each other and my aunt and uncle's marriage has always been them trying to prove the other’s family is inferior to theirs… Even my parents… My dad’s a Nott and my mom was a Shafiq. When she died, my grandparents on her side blamed us for ‘poisoning’ their family tree.” Theo takes another gulp of Fire Whiskey and shakes his head. “When you think about it, I was  _ raised _ to hate Gabriel. But I didn’t. Not really. He was my cousin. And true, we fought, we usually didn’t see things eye to eye, and we annoyed the fuck out of each other, but we also understood each other better than anyone else because we knew exactly what the other’s life was like…” Theo trails off then turn to Kai. “Did you know that Gabriel was gay?”

Kai stares at Theo, then snorts. He grabs the bottle. “Beats me,” he says before taking a gulp.

“I stole his journal, once,” Theo goes on. At this point, he doesn’t seem to be paying much attention to Kai, too busy talking. “We were what? Thirteen? Fourteen? I wanted to piss him off, that’s all. I didn’t expect to find a love letter there. For  _ Nyx Astor _ , of all people.”

Kai does a double-take, eyes wide. “Gabriel had a crush on Nyx?”

Theo laughs. “Yeah. And now they died together. How romantic, right? Good thing my aunt never knew about them. She would have been livid. Not because Astor’s a guy. But because he’s an  _ Astor _ .”

Kai frowns at that. “I thought your aunt and the Astors got along? They’re always seen together.”

“Yeah,” Theo says and he looks like he’s about to laugh, “but not because my aunt likes them. She calls them ‘fakebloods’. She always doubted their blood status. She says they’re opportunists who aren’t cut out for the elite but still want to be part of it. She  _ hates _ them. The first time Gabriel told them about Lux, my aunt  _ flipped _ . Especially because she thinks they’re dating. If Gabriel could have been kidnapped with someone else, she would have prefered it.”

“So, you really believe that? That Caulfield and her sister kidnapped Gabe and Nyx?”

Theo looks sideways at Kai, biting his lip as if he’s calculating if he should say something or not. In the end, he settles with an “I don’t know,” and drinks some more. “Anyway. All of that to say that I know stuff about Gabriel and Gabriel knew stuff about me and we understood each other, you know? I sort of knew why he was always trying to provoke our family and he knew why I would never. And I think we both respected that.”

“You know…” Kai starts, trying to think of a way to say this. “I’ve always considered you my best friend but right now, I feel like I don’t know  _ shit _ about you.”

“And isn’t that exactly the point?” Theo replies, leaning his head against the back of the couch, turning it toward Kai. “I mean, I don’t know much about you either, Alpert. Before this year, I never could have guessed that you could date someone like  _ Astor _ . Girl Astor, I mean. Alive Astor,” he adds, laughing bitterly. “And yet… But I guess that’s why we consider each other best friends. Because we don’t need to know anything about each other to get along, to be friends. I respect you and you respect me. We’re kindred spirits,” he adds, tapping his temple and showing Kai’s. “And look, we’re learning now.”

Kai nods, pursing his lips. “I’m sorry you had to lose your cousin to open up.”

Theo huffs, then sighs. “Yeah, well… His death had to have a purpose.”

“You’re going to be okay?” Kai asks. He never would have guessed he would end his day by comforting Theo.

“Yeah. I just need to get it out of my system and tomorrow, I’ll go back to being cool, detached Theo again.”

“Are you going to go to the funerals?”

Theo shrugs. “I think so. My dad and my uncle will want me to be there. As for my aunt… I don’t know what she’ll want. I can’t imagine how she must feel. Gabriel was her everything.” He pauses, then adds, “I hope your parents will be there. I’ve always liked your dad and I think my uncle and my aunt like them too since you guys were invited to our Christmas party.”

“I don’t know,” Kai replies, biting his lips. “They haven’t told me.” That’s not entirely true. Kai’s parents did send him a letter, probably talking about Gabriel’s death but he hasn’t found the courage to open it yet. He has hidden it inside his Dark Arts book and hopes he’ll forget about it soon.

The two boys let the silence wash over them after that, passing the bottle to each other and drinking slowly.

“Theo…” Kai says after a while. “You said that Gabe knew why you would never betray your family. As if you wanted to but you couldn’t.”

Theo frowns. “It’s not that I  _ want _ to betray my family. It’s that I already have. I’m just trying to fix it now.”

“What do you mean, you have?”

“Merlin, Kai, you’re thick when you’ve drunk,” Theo says, shaking his head, looking like he’s about to laugh. “I told you. Gabriel and I  _ understood _ each other.” He pauses, and when Kai still doesn’t react he adds, “I’m gay!” He chuckles, then goes on. “I’ve known for pretty much as long as him. I told him when I gave him his journal back. The thing is that my dad has already arranged my wedding with Angelica Travers, that fifth-year Ravenclaw with the glasses. He would never understand.”

Theo keeps talking but Kai doesn’t really pay attention. It’s like everything clicks into place. Theo is gay and Kai’s best friend. Gabriel knew both of these facts and kept picking fights with Kai because of who he considered his friends. Could Gabriel have been  _ jealous _ of Theo this whole time?

“Wow,” Kai says after a while, leaning back into the couch. He drinks some more whiskey then gives it back to Theo so he can finish. They stay in silence for a bit, then wobble together back to their dorms, making the silent promise to never talk about this again.

Kai goes to bed and falls asleep immediately. He could have told Theo about him and Gabriel, Lux and her theories, Gabriel’s part in the resistance. He’s pretty sure Theo would have been receptive. And yet, he didn’t. Because with Gabriel’s death, he feels like this was a part of his life he’d rather bury. With Gabriel’s death, there’s no point in Theo knowing about them. It wouldn’t change anything.

***

Sage is woken up way earlier than usual, that day, Pansy Parkinson opening the curtains around her bed in one swift motion.

“Get up, Choi. The Carrows want everyone up in the Great Hall by six.”

“What?” Sage asks, voice hoarse, still a bit out of it. “What time is it?”

“Quarter to,” Pansy replies before going to Milicent’s bed. 

Sage groans and lays back, resting her arm above her eyes.

“Come on,” Pansy hisses, turning back toward Sage when she notices that she’s not moving.

“Yes, yes,” Sage replies, rolling her eyes but doing as told, grabbing her robe and wrapping it around herself.

If the Carrows think she’s going to get dressed at 5 in the morning, they are greatly mistaken. Considering Pansy is also still wearing her pajamas, Sage guesses they won’t mind.

Upstairs, in the common room, every Slytherin is there, most of them wrapped up in robes or throw blankets, aside from a few courageous ones having put on their uniforms.

On the steps that lead to the exit, Sage sees Theo, Blaise, and Kai, joking around. Theo and Kai look absolutely knackered, with huge dark circles and red eyes. They must have slept even less than her. Sage glares at them, not understanding how Theo can act so smiley when he just lost his cousin. Pansy goes to join them and when she gets near Kai, she starts giggling, acting all flirty and shy. Sage rolls her eyes, expecting Kai to reject her, as always, but to her surprise, he bumps their shoulders together and whispers something in her ear that makes Pansy blush and giggle some more.

“So it’s true,” she says to no one in particular. “They really did break up.”

Next to her, Harper gives her a confused look. Sage sighs. 

“Alright, everyone is here?” Theo calls out after a minute, clapping his hand together. “Let’s go, people.”

The Slytherins walk as one outside of the Common Room and toward the grand staircase. At some point, they run into the Hufflepuffs, and students start mixing, trying to find out what’s going on. Sage starts looking for Nova but to her surprise, it’s Ezra that comes to find her first.

“Psss, Sage.”

“Ezra?” Sage says, looking around to check that he’s really addressing her.

To her surprise, he is, and his question takes her even more aback. “What’s up with Alpert and Pansy? They’re together?”

Sage frowns. “You came to me to gossip about Kai?” Then it downs on her. “Oh. You wonder if he and Lux really did break up so that you can seize your chance?”

“What?” Ezra asks, looking genuinely confused. “No, not at all. He and Lux never dated.”

“No?” Sage asks, always one to gossip. 

“No, no,” Ezra confirms quickly. “They’re just friends. But what about Pansy and him?” he presses on. “What’s up with that?”

Sage shrugs. “I don’t know. Yesterday, Kai seemed… kinder with her and this morning he whispered something in her ear,” she says with a grimace.

“And now they’re holding hands,” Ezra replies, gesturing toward the head of the group.

Sage gets on the tip of her toes and indeed, she finds Kai and Pansy holding hands, Kai once more whispering stuff in Pansy’s ear.

“Ugh. That’s literally the worst couple that could come out of this year,” she says to herself before turning to Ezra. “I didn’t think you were the gossip type,” she says, batting playfully Ezra’s shoulder.

“Well,” Ezra starts with a shrug, looking sheepish. “There’s a first for everything.”

“Ezra…” Sage says then, her tone more serious. “How’s Lux?”

Ezra studies Sage’s face, probably to decide if he should tell her or not when Nova pushes through the crowd to get to them.

“Ezra!”

Ezra turns around and sighs, annoyed when he sees her. “Sorry, Sage, I have to go.” He almost adds a “see you later” but he’s not sure he’s quite ready to talk to her either.

“Ezra, wait,” Sage tries to stop him but he ignores her.

“Sage,” Nova says, a bit out of breath when she reaches her. “You were talking with Ezra? What did he want? Did he talk to you about Lux?”

Sage shakes her head, her eyes fixed on Ezra’s back. “Nah, he wanted to know what was up with Pansy and Kai.”

“ _ What’s _ up with them?” Nova asks, looking for them in the crowd.

“They’re dating,” Sage replies, pointing toward them.

Nova follows her finger and grimaces. “So he and Lux really broke up, uh? Good.”

Sage shakes her head again as they reach the Great Hall. “Nah, Ezra says they never dated.”

The Hufflepuffs and the Slytherins are the first to reach the Great Hall. When they get here, they notice three things right away. First, the fact that all the tables have disappeared. Second, the fact that only the Carrow siblings are there, standing where the staff table usually is, looking like they know something no one else does, which is more likely true. Finally, the huge, blood-red letters painted all over the walls that spell messages like “ _ Gabriel and Nyx were murdered by You-Know-Who _ ,” “ _ Anya and Selene are innocent _ ,” “ _ The real murderer is the Ministry _ ,” or “ _ Fight the Carrows, avenge Nyx and Gabriel _ .”

Sage stares at the message, mouth agape, as everyone around her takes in the scene and gaps, nudges their neighbor, and starts talking animatedly. 

The Gryffindors and the Ravenclaws show up not too long after that, Neville, Ginny, Seamus, and Lux leading the group, their heads held high, also looking like they know something no one else does.

“Oh no,” Sage says lowly, eyebrows drawn together in concern. “Lux, what did you  _ do _ ?”

A row before her, Ezra turns toward the Gryffindors and winks at Lux. When he turns back, Sage briefly catches his eyes and mouths “ _ What did you do? _ ” Ezra smirks but doesn’t reply.

“That’s it,” Nova mumbles next to Sage, her eyes fixed on the messages. “They’re dead.”

When everyone is here and settled, the Carrow siblings close the doors of the Great Hall but don’t move or say anything. They let the silence dramatically wash over the crowd, looking content. Then, after a few coughs break the calm, Amycus steps forward and starts pacing in front of the students while Alecto gets ready to talk.

“Good morning. I imagine that you must all be quite surprised to have been woken up and brought here so early. I also imagine that you must be confused by these…  _ graffitis, _ ” Alecto says gesturing at the walls, her eyes full of disdain. “Do not worry, however. The Chambers of Secrets has not been reopened,” she announces before laughing loudly, the glacial sound of it echoing in the room. None of the students, especially not Ginny, find it funny. “No, you see,” Alecto goes on, visibly not bothered by her flop, “a few of your classmates thought it would be  _ funny _ to desacralize such a place with pathetic and petty provocations. I assure you, however, that neither my brother, nor I, nor the entire staff of this school will take lightly the fact that this group of delinquents decided to use the tragic deaths of these two regretted wizards for their personal, supposed, vendetta.”

Alecto comes closer to the crowd then, every student staring at her in shock, none of them moving a single muscle. They all know that tone. Last time she used it, students ended up locked up in the dungeons.

Alecto scans through the crowd until her eyes land on Ezra, a small smirk stretching her lips. “Him,” she tells her brother, pointing at Ezra. “The halfblood.”

Amycus follows her finger and grabs Ezra by his arm, probably holding tightly enough to leave behind an ugly bruise. He drags Ezra to the front of the crowd so that everyone can see him. Ezra doesn’t protest but looks at Ernie and Hannah, his own fear reflecting in their eyes. A few gasps gain the audience and a few “No!” erupt from the Hufflepuffs and the Gryffindors.

“Give me your wand, boy,” Amycus orders him.

“Why? What’s going on?” Ezra finally asks, starting to panic.

Amycus doesn’t reply, just smirks.

“Hand him your wand or you’ll regret it, Cohen,” Alecto says dryly, looking almost bored.

Ezra does as told and tries to not look at the audience anymore, feeling all their eyes on him.

Amycus bows his head as a thank you and steps back. “Alecto, if you please.”

Alecto raises her own wand and points it at Ezra.

“No!”

The crowd breaks into loud protests, a few Hufflepuffs, lead by Hannah and Ernie, going as far as stepping forward.

“Quiet!” Amycus roars, waving his wand toward the crowd to shut them up. “I don’t want to hear anything and the next one that moves is going to receive the same treatment as Cohen. Understood?” None of them can reply but Amycus still looks satisfied. “Alecto,” he says again. “Please proceed.”

Alecto, who lowered her wands when the students yelled, raises it again and points it at Ezra once more. “Kneel, boy. You’re going to hurt yourself.”

The crowd of students stares as Ezra slowly lowers himself to the ground, his head bowed. At the last moment, he looks up, just in time to see Alecto’s eyes light up in delight.

“ _ Crucio _ .”

Ezra yells out in pain and collapses on the ground, squirming in pain at Alecto’s feet. The students remain silent, still under Amycus’s spell. Next to Neville, Lux bends in half, crying desperately, unable to scream. Neville and Seamus try to hold her back, the entire student body staring in horror at Alecto as she moves around Ezra.

“I hope this is enough of a warning for all of you. Previous directions of this school were too lenient, too  _ soft _ . But Headmaster Snape, my brother, and I are determined to make sure that each one of you learns discipline and respect by the end of this year. From now on, anyone that will dare to try humiliating us in such ways will have to face the same treatment. Is that clear?”

Most of the students nod, all of them looking at Ezra still crying in pain, curled up on the floor.

“Good. Cohen? Did I make myself clear?”

“Yes,” he barely manages to say.

“Good,” Alecto says again. “Now get out of here. All of you. You have classes in three hours.”

Some of the Slytherins and the Ravenclaws start moving but most of the students stand still, still fixed on Ezra.

“Now,” Amycus orders them loudly, pushing a few students toward the door, and breaking the silencing spell.

“And can someone get Cohen off of the floor?” Alecto says, sounding annoyed.

Ernie and Hannah rush forward, grabbing Ezra from under the shoulders. Amycus hands Ezra’s wand to Ernie, who takes it and makes a beeline for the doors, still holding Ezra up with Hannah. Nova walks toward them but Hannah angrily shooes her away. “Not now, Nova!”

Among the Gryffindors, Lux struggles breathing, Ginny and Lavender trying to calm her down. When Lux finally starts to breathe normally and she’s only sobbing, she looks up, looking for Ezra, but her eyes catch Kai’s, who’s walking toward the doors with the rest of the Slytherin. He looks at her for a bit, looking sadly, tears in his eyes, but it only lasts a couple of seconds, until Pansy drags him away, looking like she’d like to be anywhere but here.

“Ezra!” Neville calls out next to Lux, seeing Ernie and Hannah coming toward them.

“Come on, guys,” Ernie says urgently, hoisting Ezra back up. “We have to get him out of here.”

Neville and Seamus take over and the two of them walk more quickly toward the Hufflepuff Common Room. Ernie, Hannah, Ginny, Lux, and Lavender follow suit, while Parvati takes over the lead of the Gryffindors.

“Nothing to see here, guys, come on.”

When the group reaches the Hufflepuff Common Room entrance, Hannah steps forward and opens the door, all of them sliding inside.

“Hey!” A fourth-year girl, one of the rare students to be already in her uniform, protests but Ernie snaps at her.

“Knock it off, our friend just got  _ crucioed _ by a teacher. You really think the rules matter right now?”

The fourth-year steps back and Nova goes to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. “Come on, come in. Let them help Ezra. We’re all very tired and a bit traumatized. Go get some sleep before class, alright?”

“Wayne, Zach, we’re taking the dorm. Is that alright with you?” Ernie tells them, asking but not really leaving room for argument.

“Downstairs, third door on the left,” Hannah indicates Neville and Seamus who carry a semi-conscious Ezra to his dorm. The others follow close behind, Ernie pointing at Ezra’s bed when they get there.

Lux collapses on the floor next to Ezra’s head, grabbing his hand and caressing his face.

“You okay, Ez?” she asks softly, still on the verge of crying.

“Yeah,” Ezra replies, smiling a little. “I’m fine. Just a bit shaken,” he adds weakly.

Neville stares at Ezra, pain, and horror still marking his face. “I can’t believe they went this far.”

“Clearly we hit a nerve,” Ginny replies bitterly, crossing her arms over her chest, leaning against the wall.

“We have to have a DA meeting tonight,” Seamus says. “People are probably getting ready to defect as we speak.”

“Good,” Ginny retorts. “We can’t afford any weakness. Only the people willing to go on with the plan no matter what should stay in the DA.”

“Come on guys,” Neville says, heading to the door. “Let’s get some sleep before class. There’s no need talking about this now.”

They all agree, Ernie throwing himself on his bed, and Hannah going to her own dorm. The rest waves at Ezra and leaves the dorm, Lux curling up against Ezra in his bed.

“This isn’t how I imagined sharing my bed with you for the first time,” Ezra tries to joke as he wraps an arm around her waist.

“Shhhh,” Lux replies, grabbing his hand over her stomach and settling against him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They're all going through it right now and wait until next chapter because Julian is straight up not having a good time either!


	25. February 14, 1998 - 77 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back, I'm back! Sorry, Christmas is always a busy time for me and this chapter needed a bit of tweacking. I've added two chapters because I felt that the transition between this chapter and the next was a bit too brutal.  
> This chapter here focuses on Valentina and Julian and it's got a little surprise... Happy Valentine's Day! (This chapter has 0 reference to Valentine's Day... I legit just realized it was set during Valentine's Day... I'm a terrible writer...)

It’s been over a month and Julian still hasn’t forgiven Valentina for leaving Selene, Nyx, Gabriel, and Anya behind. He barely acknowledges her now, only does when necessary, and goes to Kingsley first whenever he needs something. During the day, he either trains by himself in the basement or locks himself up, either in his bedroom or the office, preparing something neither Kingsley nor Valentina know about. Valentina tries to stay positive but it is getting harder and harder with each passing day.

When Kingsley went home that night, Valentina was waiting for him in the living room, in front of her chimney, a bottle of Fire Whiskey half empty in her hand, still covered in blood and dust and tears. As soon as he entered the room, Valentina knew the worst had happened and when the words left Kingsley’s mouth, Valentina didn’t have any tears left to shed, only felt her heart break even more as she took a long swig of whiskey.

“Go tell him,” Valentina ordered Kingsley before heading to her bedroom, grabbing another bottle on her way there, and locking the door behind her.

Kingsley went to Julian’s bedroom, upstairs, and just like Valentina, Julian read right away on his face that what he dreaded had happened. Julian broke down when Kingsley told him about Nyx and Gabriel and Kingsley held him until he fell asleep, before going to sleep on the couch. 

The next day, neither Valentina nor Julian left their rooms. Valentina did open her door, though, and Kingsley spent the day going from one bedroom to another, trying to cheer them up and feeding them. By the end of the day, he had managed to get Valentina to shower and take care of her wound, and to have Julian eat a full bowl of soup. He didn’t show them the  _ Daily Prophet  _ right away but he regretted that choice immediately. The following day, when they did found out that Gabriel had been killed as well, Julian spent an hour yelling and cursing both Kingsley and Valentina, threatening to leave until Kingsley eventually managed to calm him down. As for Valentina, she didn’t really react, looking very much like Anya that night, numb to everything, barely glancing at the newspaper and opening another bottle as Julian yelled monstruisities at her.

Left alone in the living room, Kingsley tried to keep the machine running, avoiding any vague messages sent by the Order and thinking about why Yaxley and his men had killed Nyx and taken Gabriel, only to kill him too. In the end, he came up with a theory that didn’t please Valentina too much.

“Kingsley…”

“No, listen!” Kingsley pleaded with her, sitting cross-legged on her bed to face her. “From the start, we knew that the Notts and the Ministry were using Gabriel, Nyx, Anya, and Selene for their anti-muggle-borns policy. It’s what launched the decree and it worked well but they were always risking for Gabriel and Nyx to reveal the truth. With them dead, they become martyrs for the cause.”

“Alright. But why let you go? Why let Selene and Anya go?”

“Because they still want their witch hunt. Now Selene, Anya, and I are  _ murderers  _ on the run. People will want them to catch us and if they do, our trial will be the event of the year,” Kingsley explained, looking all too pleased for someone talking about his own trial.

“What about Gabriel, then?” Valentina asked, still not too convinced. “Why take him if only to kill him right after? Why not kill him right away? You said yourself that you were all at their mercy.”

Kingsley bit his lips then, less sure about this part of his theory. “That’s the thing… Val, I don’t think Gabriel is actually dead.”

“Kingsley…”

“No, listen,” he said again, grabbing her hands. “I know I could be wrong and we can’t afford to have false hopes but I’ve been thinking about it a lot. Gabriel is a  _ Keita _ . The Keitas would never kill one of their own. Reine might have had a say in the Notts’ plan and ask for her son’s life.”

“You think that they’re only  _ pretending _ that he is dead?” Valentina asks, refusing to believe it but still starting to.

“Yes!”

“But what happens if they do win this war? Do they just keep Gabriel hidden forever?”

“I don’t know. I honestly have no idea what their endgame is here. All I know is that Yaxley said that the plan was to kill Nyx and get Gabriel. It has to mean something, right?” Kingsley said looking at Valentina, hoping she would agree.

Valentina, however, sighed and looked down at the covers, worrying her lower lip. “Have you told Julian about your theory?”

“Not yet,” Kingsley replied. “I was waiting to talk to you before going to him. Do you think I should tell him?”

Valentina shrugged. “I don’t know. He’s pretty fragile. Are you sure it’s a good idea to gets his hopes up like that?”

“Julian is a part of this, now, Val. I asked you if you were sure you wanted to throw him into this and you said yes. He deserves to know. Besides, he’s stronger than you think.”

“What about the Order?” Valentina asked, trying to change the subject.

“I don’t know. I don’t know if they still trust me and I’d rather show them something concrete…”

“Like Gabriel alive?”

“For example,” Kingsley replied with a small shrug.

“Okay,” Valentina eventually said with a small nod. “Tell Julian,” she added after a bit, which lead to Julian’s third screaming fit of the week. 

In the days that followed, Valentina slowly resurfaced, forced to go back to the Ministry and reboosted by Kingsley’s theory. Julian, however, was nowhere to be seen, aside from the rare times he came to get food from the kitchen or books from the library.

Valentina has been going to the Ministry alone since then, pretending that her assistant had had to go home for a family issue. Now, however, it’s been a month and Yaxley and Nott are getting suspicious.

“I don’t know what to do, Kingsley,” Valentina says that morning as she gets ready to leave for the Nott estate. “Julian has seen some pretty incriminating stuff and they’re starting to think that he was a French spy and that he’s gotten back home to reveal everything that’s been happening at Hogwarts and at the Ministry. And my ‘he has family issues’ excuse isn’t going to hold much longer,” she says with air quotes before wrapping her scarf around her neck. “What do I do?”

Kingsley sighs, before grabbing her hand. “Maybe I could talk to him again? He usually listens to me.”

“No need.”

Kingsley and Valentina both startle and look up when they hear Julian’s voice coming from the door. Kingsley puts on a fake, reassuring smile when he sees him and Valentina looks utterly terrified.

“Julian!” Kingsley exclaims, walking toward him. “Good morning! What do you want to eat? I can make you something if you want,” he says gesturing toward the kitchen.

Julian ignores him however and looks at Valentina. “You want me to come to the Nott estate with you? I’ll come.”

“You will?” Valentina asks meekly, eyes wide open.

“I will,” Julian confirms. “Don’t take this the wrong way though. I’m only coming because you sacrificed Nyx and Gabriel to keep your cover safe and I don’t want it to have been for nothing,” he says simply, making Kingsley wince. Valentina tries not to react and show her pain, despite his sentence feeling like a stab to the heart. “But this is the last time. I’m leaving tonight.”

“What?” Valentina and Kingsley say at the same time, making Julian shrug.

“There’s no point in my staying any longer. I have no way of contacting my friends at Hogwarts without endangering them, we have no idea where Selene and Anya are, and Nyx and Gabriel are dead. So I’ll come with you to the Notts to explain why I’m leaving, and then I’ll go to Malabo.”

“To… to Malabo?” Kingsley repeats, not sure he heard that correctly.

Julian only nods, looking calm and sure of himself. “Oh yeah, I haven’t told you about that part. I’m only going to the Notts’ to search their house. If Gabriel really is still alive, as you said, then there’s a heavy chance the Notts are keeping him there. If not, then I’ll go to straight to the Keitas.”

Kingsley and Valentina stare at him, waiting for the other to say something. Eventually, it’s Valentina who risks it. “Julian… You can’t just  _ go _ to Malabo! You don’t even speak Spanish!”

“So? The Keitas speak French and English too, I’m sure we’ll understand each other.”

“Julian,” Kingsley tries then. “The Keitas are a very ancient, very powerful family. More powerful than any wizarding families you have met so far… You can’t go alone, without being invited. It’s too dangerous.”

“But I really don’t care, Kingsley,” Julian replies, remaining calm. “I told you. I have nothing holding me back here and I’ve had a lot of time to think about it. A month of it, actually,” he adds, almost cheekily.

Valentina studies Julian closely. He looks more confident than ever. He has come a long way since that morning back in august when Valentina found him in his Star Wars knickers, milk dripping through his shirt and cartoons playing in the background. His hair has grown back into messy but attractive tousled curls and the bottom half of his face is covered by a thick stubble. He looks older somehow too; the bruises and cuts from the night of Nyx’s murder still marking his face, and the confidence and grief that can be read in his eyes, unfortunately, make him look more mature. Valentina can only stare, almost in awe of the man he has become.

“Julian… “ Valentina tries again but Julian is leaving no room for argument.

“No. You asked me to trust you and I do... Still... Somehow...” he says truthfully, his calm and confident mask slipping a bit to let pain and sadness flash briefly in his eyes. “You think that Gabriel is still alive and I believe you. So I’m going to look for him.” He looks down at his feet and adds, barely loud enough to be heard, “Someone has to.”

Kingsley and Valentina look at each other again, still waiting for the other to say something. After a bit, Julian sighs, looking annoyed. “Listen, it’s either that or I’m going straight to the Keitas so it’s as you wish.”

Kingsley opens his mouth, probably to try to reason him but Valentina is quicker.

“Alright.”

Julian nods and walks out of the kitchen, grabbing his cloak on the way.

“Julian, wait, your Polyjuice!” Valentina says as she watches him go before turning toward Kingsley, to give him a sad look.

“He’s angry but not at you,” Kingsley tries to reassure her. “You heard him, he still trusts you. He’s mainly sad, that’s it. Give him time. He needs to grieve.”

“I know,” Valentina replies before leaning forward to quickly kiss Kingsley. “See you later.”

She grabs her own cloak and jogs to catch up with Julian.

“Julian, wait,” she calls out as she sees him turn into Julien Belfort.

Julian stops until she reaches him but doesn’t acknowledge her more than that. They cross the magical edge at the end of the path and Julian Disapparates without waiting for her. Annoyed, Valentina pivots and lands in an alley way of Merlin’s Vale, Julian already walking toward the Nott’s estate.

“For Merlin’s sake, Julien. Will you at least wait for me?”

“I’m not going to pretend I’m not mad at you, Val,” Julian finally says. “I’m only coming with you because I don’t want to blow your cover. But I meant what I said. This is the last time. If Gabriel isn’t here, I’m going to fucking Equatorial Guinea.”

“And what if he is?” Valentina dares to say.

Julian stops in his track and stares at her, fury flashing behind his eyes. “Do not do that. You already gave me more hope than I should have.”

“Why are you looking for him if you don’t believe that he's still alive?”

“Because it’s the only thing I have left! Don’t you get it? I’m all out of hope, Val! Nyx is dead. Selene and Anya are god knows where. Kingsley hasn’t seen the Order since we got attacked because he’s scared for you. And you’re helping the  _ Notts _ ! What am I supposed to do? I have never been surer that I was never going to see Ezra or Nova or Lux ever again and You-Know-Who has won. Looking for Gabriel is the only useful thing I can think to do before leaving the UK for good.”

“Julian…”

“Seriously, Val. Stop,” Julian says firmly. “I… I can’t take anymore than I already have. Gabriel is the last thing I have. Let me handle it my way.”

“But what if he  _ is _ there?” she asks again, pleading him with her eyes. “What will you do?”

“I don’t know,” Julian replies honestly before starting to walk again. 

They move through the streets of Merlin’s Vale in complete silence, only slightly broken by the sound of their feet on the snow. Valentina keeps stealing glances toward Julian, constantly biting her tongue. It’s excruciatingly cold today and he wears his regular winter cloak, which means that it’s a bit too small on his  _ polyjuiced _ body. He doesn’t seem to care, however, looking straight forward as he walks, like a man on a mission. Valentina supposes that he is.

When they arrive at the Nott estate, he steps in front of Valentina and knocks three times with the door knocker shaped like a panther.

It’s Vincent who opens up the door, looking absolutely startled when he sees Julian.

“ _ Monsieur Belfort _ ! What a surprise! My master didn’t expect you today but I’m sure he’ll be pleased to see you.”

Julian nods and he and Valentina both cross the threshold. Vincent takes their cloaks, scarves, gloves, and beanies, and lead them to a meeting room where Vinicius and Yaxley are waiting for them.

“Ah, Miss Weger, good morning!” Vinicius greets her before seeing Julian. “And Mister Belfort! What a surprise. We wondered what had happened to you. Miss Weger told us that you had… family issues, is that it?”

Valentina stares at Julian, praying that he’ll play along, while Julian completely ignores her. He still looks completely unfazed and Valentina wonders where that Julian was months ago when they encountered the Carrows.

“I do, indeed, Vinicius,” Julian replies. “And this is actually why this is the last time you’ll see me, too. You see, my sister has run away with a muggle and my parents are, as you can imagine, less than pleased. I came home to try and find her but we think it’s going to take more to get her back on the right track so I came back here to settle all of my affairs and then I’ll head home for good, I’m afraid.”

Yaxley and Vinicius share a look, then Vinicius looks back at Julian, looking neutral. “Well, that’s just...  _ tragique, _ as you French say. I hope you’ll manage to help your sister, Julien.”

“I hope so too,” Julian replies with a small, forced smile.

Valentina has a hard time looking away from him, completely baffled by his newfound lying skills.

“Shall we start?” Yaxley asks then, looking fidgety.

“Before we do,” Julian starts again before Yaxley can go on, “Vinicius, I heard about your son and I want to offer you my most sincere condolences.”

Vinicius gives him a closed-lip smile that makes Julian tick. “Thank you. This past month has been… rough, to say the least, but that also made us even more determined to put an end to these acts of terrorism.”

For the first time since they got to Merlin’s Vale, Julian looks at Valentina. It’s brief and hard to translate but Valentina still takes it as a win.

They start then, going back to their usual talks about anti-muggle-borns decrees and educational policies and the way Valentina can promote them, the interviews she should give, the campaigns she should support. They talk about the possibility of her going to Hogwarts to give a speech and Valentina prays that the offer will make Julian reconsider his plans.

After about an hour and a half of work, Julian stands up, pretending a need to go to the bathroom.

“Oh, use the one near the leaving room, we’re having issues with the one near the kitchen,” Vinicius informs him, before going back to the last decree Yaxley wrote, a marriage-restriction law that should be published soon.

Julian leaves the room and is glad to have an excuse to go near the staircase. Remembering Lux and Kai going upstairs at the Christmas party, Julian decides to go look for Gabriel’s bedroom first. He goes through the first floor, finding nothing, then goes to the second. The first room he visits must belong to Theodore Nott, as judged by the Slytherin flags and crests on the walls, the various pictures of Zabini and Alpert, or the wizard chess set near the window. Julian closes the door with a small grimace and goes to the next room, opening the door and gasping out loud.

Sitting on the bed, scratching a piece of paper with a small pencil, there’s a tall boy, with a mess of curls on his head, a small beard on his cheeks and jaw, and one leg elevated on a pillow, looking tired and badly injured but very much alive.

Julian should pinch himself to make sure he isn’t dreaming.

“ _ Gabriel? _ ”

Gabriel startles when he hears his name being called and looks slightly frightened when his eyes land on Julian.

“Who are you?” he asks, the fear in his eyes startling Julian even more. He has never seen Gabriel look so defiant and scared, not even after the battle, last year. Whatever the Notts have been doing to him can’t have been very pleasant. Still, Julian doesn’t understand why he looks at  _ him  _ like that. And then, it dawns on him. 

“Who am- Oh right, you don’t know  _ this  _ me,” he says, remembering his appearance. He raises his hands as a sign of peace and they are slightly shaking from the shock of seeing Gabriel alive. “I’m going to tell you who I am but first I have to make absolutely sure that you are who I think you are, alright?”

Gabriel stares at him, still a bit scared, but now confused too. He nods.

“During your fifth year, someone asked you to the yule ball and you said no. You only told two people about this. Lux Astor and Julian Rose. Who was that person and what did you tell Lux and Julian afterwards?”

Gabriel frowns at Julian, visibly taken aback by the question. “I don’t… It was a girl from Durmstrang.”

“And what did you tell Julian and Lux afterwards?”

Gabriel opens and closes his mouth, probably debating if he should tell the truth. In the end, he says, “That I wished she had been a boy.”

Julian breathes out, relieved, and feels tears of joy pool at his eyes. He takes a few steps toward Gabriel, not wanting to frighten him but dying to hug him. “Oh thank god, it’s really  _ you _ , Gabe! I- It’s me! I’m Julian! Last year I found you and Kai kissing in the corridor near the Divination Tower!”

“Julian?” Gabriel repeats, not sure to believe it, despite Julian’s identity check.

“Yes! I… Oh my god, Gabriel, I’ve never been happier to see you! I… I thought you were dead, we all did! I-” Julian babbles as he practically throws himself at Gabriel to hug him, making him wince a little. Gabriel tries to return his hug in earnest, still looking confused.

“You thought I was dead?” Gabriel says when Julian pulls back, eyebrows drawn together.

“Yeah! That’s what the  _ Prophet  _ said. You didn’t know?”

“The  _ Prophet _ said I was  _ dead _ ?” Gabriel repeats, eyes wide opened.

Julian looks at Gabriel sadly. “Yeah… They’re using you and Nyx for their war on muggle-borns. You guys are martyrs now. You had national funerals and everything.”

“But… But everyone… Lux… and Kai… They…”

Julian seems to realize what it means at the same time and deflates immediately. “I’m sorry, man, but yeah. They must believe that you’re dead, too. We all do. Or well.  _ Did _ . In my case.”

“I guess it doesn’t matter much anyway. I doubt I’ll be alive for much longer,” Gabriel says, toying with the front of his short.

“What?” Julian asks. “What do you mean?”

“They only took me here because of my mother, Julian. And if they already told the whole world I was dead, I don’t think they plan on keeping me alive for much longer.”

“Oh but that doesn’t matter,” Julian replies simply. “You’re coming with me. I’m not leaving you here.” Gabriel smiles but there’s no joy to it. “What?” Julian asks.

“I can’t. I’m magically linked to that room. I can’t leave it.”

“What? How is that possible?” Julian says, not for the first time, always baffled by how far magic can go.

“It’s geophysical African magic,” Gabriel replies. “My family is very good at it. It’s the study of magical links between wizards and their location. You never wondered why my family was so influential? We’re the one who invented Portkeys and later on Apparition. That’s how they managed to track us that night and that’s how they locked me here.”

“Okay but there has to be a way to break the spell, right? There’s always a way,” he adds pointedly. 

Gabriel shrugs. “I guess, but I’m not sure how. I studied here, not in Iladyi, and my mother never taught me. I don’t think I was even conscious when they did the spell.”

“Okay. Okay. Okay,” Julian says several time, eyes fixed on Gabriel’s bed, thinking a mile a minute, much less calm and confident now. “Okay,” he says again, slightly more assured when he looks up. “I’ll get Kingsley and Valentina and we’ll find a solution together. We’re pretty smart, right? I’m sure we’ll find something. And Kingsley is half Nigerian, right? Do they practice Geo-whatever magic in Nigeria? If they do, he might know some stuff we don’t. In the meantime, you just have to… try and stay alive alright?”

“Julian…” Gabriel tries to say, sitting up a little.

“No, no, no, Gabriel,” Julian cuts him off. “You came back from the dead for me. I’m not losing you, again, alright? Kai and Lux deserve a happy ending too. Especially Lux. You… I don’t know… Maybe, try to remind your parents that you’re their darling boy or whatever and I do what I need to do to get you out of here. You hear me?”

“I do,” Gabriel replies with a nod. He still looks resigned, however.

“Okay,” Julian says once more. “I have to go back downstairs before they get suspicious but I’ll come back for you, babe, okay?” Julian leans down and wraps his arms around Gabriel, hugging him close and kissing the top of his head.

“Julian, wait,” Gabriel says when Julian has reached the door. “How did you find me? How did you come here?”

“Valentina is downstairs, we have an appointment with your dad. Valentina and Kingsley thought that you might still be alive and I wanted to make sure so I went to look for your bedroom. I saw Lux and Kai go upstairs at the Christmas party so I assume that’s where they went.”

“Lux and Kai came here?” Gabriel asks, looking genuinely surprised. “Did you see them come back with something?”

“I don’t know,” Julian says with a shrug. “I don’t think so. They were thrown out by your cousin. Why?”

Gabriel bites his lip. “I had a ring in one of those boxes,” he explains, pointing at the brown and grey boxes on his bed, “but it’s gone. I… It’s important to me so I thought…”

“I don’t know. They kinda avoided us for the rest of the evening.”

Gabriel nods, looking thoughtful.

“Oh, and Gabe? While I’m here. If by miracle you manage to escape before we come to rescue you, think about the Delamere forest in the Chesire. There’s a boulder shaped like a strawberry there. Look for us there.”

Gabriel seems confused only for a few seconds then nods. “Okay.”

“See you soon, babe,” Julian says with a wink then leaves, rushing downstairs. When he reappears in the meeting room, Yaxley and Vinicius look more suspicious than ever and Valentina looks pale and sick.

“Sorry,” Julian says, overdoing it with the French accent, so as to ease their suspicions. “I just got back from France and the food here makes me a bit sick.”

Neither Vinicius nor Yaxley look pleased but Julian doesn’t know if it’s because they’re not buying it or because they’re genuinely offended by his comment.

They finish the meeting, planning for Valentina to give a speech at Hogwarts in a few days, and then Valentina and Julian are lead back to the door. When they leave the house, Vinicius turns toward Yaxley.

“I think it’s time to check with your contacts in France, see if they know of a Julien Belfort.”

***

Julian waits to be back to Valentina’s place to drop the bomb. When they get here, he orders Valentina to sit on the couch and calls for Kingsley to join them as he paces in front of the chimney. As soon as Kingsley is here, Julian stops in his tracks, turns to them and says, “You were right. Gabriel is alive.”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MY BABE IS ALIVE!
> 
> You had to know I would never kill Gabriel, right? I couldn't kill my babies, even for the sake of a the story... Or could I? ;)


	26. February 18, 1998 - 73 days before the Battle. (part 1)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yet another set of chapters that weren't planned and literally came out of nowhere. I really like the result tho and it helps with the pace of the story I think so here you go...

That morning, the whole castle is abuzz. It has been for the past three days, actually, ever since the Carrows announced that Valentina Weger,  _ the _ Valentina Weger, would pay Hogwarts a visit. Among students, only the DA and Kai Alpert seem unpleased by the news. Everyone else seemed happy to meet the star, eagerly talking about her songs and her looks, but never about her political views, which angered Lux even more.

“They all act like she’s the greatest person to ever walk this Earth. I mean we can’t be the only ones who realize she’s a racist bitch, right?” she exclaims that morning as the Gryffindors make their way to the Great Hall for breakfast. Classes have all been cancelled today to allow students some time to meet their idol before her big speech that evening.

“I think most students are partisans of the separation between the person and the artist,” Neville offers, trying to calm Lux down. She’s been even more prone to anger since Gabriel’s and Nyx’s passing and he fears that seeing Valentina today will set her off.

“That’s bullshit,” Seamus retorts but Ginny cuts him off before he can add anything else.

“Not really,” she says as they settle in their usual spot. “I think they’re all just happy to have something else to focus on besides the Carrows and the war.”

“Because you think that this is a break?” Lux asks, stabbing a sausage. “What do you think Valentina is going to talk about in her speech tonight? Music? Outfits?  _ Please _ . This is as much part of the war as anything else. She’s here to rub it in,” she concludes bitterly, her eyes on the red letters that still paints the walls of the Great Hall.

_ The Ministry is NOT on our side. _

***

Miles away, in Hogsmeade, Julian paces the floor as Valentina sits on a bench, nursing a glass of pumpkin juice.

“Julian, I don’t get it,” she says tiredly. “I thought you  _ wanted _ to come to Hogwarts? You’ve been nagging me about it for literal  _ months. _ ”

“Yeah, but not like this!” Julian retorts finally stopping to face Valentina, his hands on his hips. “Not when Gabriel is held hostage at the Notts and we still don’t know how to get him out! Not when I can’t actually  _ talk _ to my friends for fear of blowing our covers.”

Valentina sighs. She is glad that Julian matured and decided to take his responsibilities but she didn’t realize he would still make things difficult for her. “Do you want to go back home to work with Kingsley?” she asks although she knows he’ll say no. “I don’t really need my assistant for this.”

“No, no, I’m staying. I’ll come with you, of course. I just… I can’t  _ not _ be nervous.”

“I get it,” Valentina replies as she stands up. “But don’t worry. If things go south, we’ll have Aberforth.”

They both turn to look at the man cleaning the glasses lining the counter of the tavern.

Valentina didn’t tell Julian where they were going. He knew they were heading to Hogwarts but he had no idea what their first stop would be. When they Apparated in front of the Hog’s Head Inn, he was less than pleased.

“What are we doing here?”

“Visiting an old friend,” Valentina replied before adding, less than reassuringly, “at least I hope so…”

“Val, I’m still me, we can’t-” Julian started but didn’t get to finish as Valentina dragged him inside, despite the “Closed” sign on the door.

The tavern was exactly like he remembered it being the first time he came, about two years ago: desert, old, and gloomy.

A man came downstairs then, wearing a dirty apron and carrying a cardboard box in his arms. He didn’t seem phased by either of them but didn’t seem too pleased to see them either.

“You came,” he grumpily said to Valentina without really looking at her, continuing to do whatever he was doing.

“I told you I would.”

“You did. But as I told you before, I don’t trust you.”

Julian gave Valentina a panicky look then, but she ignored him.

“Your brother told me that if I ever needed help, you were a solid option.”

“Ah,” the man said loudly. “If my brother said it then…” he trailed off before asking, “Who’s the boy?”

Julian looked at Valentina who nodded. “I’m Julian,” he said shakily, staring at the man’s back. “Julian Rose.”

“And how old are you, Julian Rose?” the man asked, turning around and leaning against the counter, giving Julian his attention.

“I’m seventeen.”

The man huffed out a laugh then but it was joyless. “Another one of my brother’s protégé, I imagine?”

“Who’s your brother?” Julian asked, confused, at the same time as Valentina firmly replied, “No.”

The man looked at Julian for a bit before turning to Valentina. “Who’s he then? A member of your family?” he asked, the word family coming out bitterly, almost accusatory. Julian frowned even more.

“Julian is a muggle-born,” Valentina explained. “I took him in because the Snatchers were after him.”

“A muggle-born?” the man repeated, looking genuinely surprised. He looked intently at Julian, scanning from head to toe with his eyes, before turning back to his cardboard box with a long sigh. “You really brought a muggle-born with you? To what? Convince me that you weren’t like  _ him? _ ”

“This is not why I brought Julian. I brought him because he works with me. And I didn’t know I needed to convince you I wasn’t like  _ him.  _ You and I both know we are not our families.”

Julian looked between Valentina and the man, still trying to piece things together. “Wait... You think Valentina is like her what… Great-Uncle? She never even met him!”

“But I did,” the man retorted. “And he destroyed my family.”

“And your brother saved mine,” Valentina replied quietly.

“Wait… you’re Dumbledore’s brother?” Julian exclaimed.

The man sighed and rolled his eyes. “I am Albus’s brother, yes. The name is Aberforth, son.”

“Julian,” Julian replied eagerly, reaching out to shake his hand.

Aberforth looked at it before taking it and shaking it once. He quickly let go afterwards and looked back at Valentina. “As you so wisely pointed out, I am not my brother. You were  _ his _ pet project. Not mine. I told Albus I didn’t want to do anything with you or your family and I’m pretty sure you weren’t part of what he gave me in his will so…”

“I’m going to Hogwarts today,” Valentina cut him off. “I need someone to contact Kingsley and the Order if things go wrong.”

“Don’t they think you’re one of them? I thought you were my brother’s little spy on the inside.”

“I am,” Valentina replied, and to Julian’s surprise, she seemed ashamed of it. “But I need a plan B. Just in case.” She paused, then added, “If not for me, at least do it for the children.”

Aberforth seemed to think about it. He turned back around and started grab to ally cleaning the counter. “Fine,” he said after a while. “I’m meant to go visit my brother’s grave anyway,” he said although Julian noticed that he wasn’t a good liar. “I’ll warn the Order if they catch you but that’s it. I told my brother I didn’t want any part in his war this time and I won’t change my mind. We’ve already lost anyway.”

Julian expected Valentina to protest, was himself ready to argue the opposite but she did nothing, simply nodded. “Thank you,” she said with a small smile.

Aberforth stared at her with an expression of disgust barely hidden and turned back around.

That was about an hour ago. Afterwards, Aberforth offered them breakfast then went back to cleaning his tavern before opening hours while Valentina and Julian went over the plan.

“Okay so we go in there and we keep our cover-up. That means no getting choked up if we see Ezra, Nova, or whoever else,” Julian started listing on his fingers, “you meet your fans, I stand behind and look menacing, we talk with the Carrows and Snape, we try to convince the rest of the staff that the school is better that way, I invent stuff about France and Beauxbâtons that they’ll probably all be able to tell it’s bullshit, you give a speech about how great being a nazi is and then we just go home, back to Kingsley and we save Gabriel. Easy peasy, right?”

Valentina stared at him, raising an eyebrow. “Easy peasy?”

Julian sighed and shook his head. “I don’t even know,” he replied before downing his glass of pumpkin juice.

“You’re nervous?” Valentina asked gently.

“Terrified,” Julian admitted. And then he started pacing.

***

At 10, Julian - now turned into Julien Belfort - and Valentina leave the Hog’s Head Inn, Aberforth informing them that he will be ten minutes behind them.

“Try not to get caught until then.”

Outside it’s freezing but they don’t care. Their attention is caught by the castle standing tall behind the trees of the forest and it’s like nothing else matters at the moment.

“I didn’t think I’d be coming back,” Valentina admits when they stop to take it in.

“Yeah,” Julian breathes out softly. “Me neither.”

Valentina gives him a sympathetic look and Julian smiles shyly, still a little uncomfortable around Valentina since their big fight and following reconciliation. Now, neither of them really know how to behave around each other but moments like this seem to erase everything, just for a bit. 

They start walking again and when they reach the gates of the village, a carriage is there, waiting for them. The door opens and Theodore Nott of all people comes out of the car, looking like he’d rather be anywhere else but here.

“Good morning, miss Weger,” Theo greets Valentina, ignoring Julian completely. “Professor Carrow sent me to get you,” he explains, gesturing toward the carriage.

Valentina nods her gratefulness and she and Julian climb inside the carriage, Theo getting in after them and the carriage leaving immediately after.

The first half of the ride goes silently, Valentina and Theo purposely looking through the window to avoid weird eye contact and uncomfortable small talks. Julian tries to imitate them but he can’t help but throw regular glances toward Theo. It’s weird to be so close to one of his classmates, even Theo, after so long. It was already pretty weird at Christmas but here, it’s different. There’s no one else around and if he shifts his long body just a little, Julian could probably touch Theo’s knee with his own. So he can’t help but feel a mix of excitement and fear. He really hopes that Theo notices neither his jitteriness nor the glances he keeps throwing his way.

Theo looks tired. He has always looked bored, of course, probably the default setting of all the Notts, but never quite so worn out. Despite his Pakistani origins, his skin is pale and his eyes are lined by dark circles that can’t only be due to the stress of upcoming exams. Before he can stop himself, Julian speaks up.

“You’re Theodore Nott, right?” he says, making both Theo and Valentina slightly startle. 

Theo frowns but nods. “I am.”

Julian opens his mouth to say something then but doesn’t quite know how to proceed. “I… You… Your cousin,” he starts clumsily before pulling himself together. “I’m sorry, I’m not too good at English,” he lies, trying to look embarrassed. “I just want to offer you my condolences.”

Theo stares darkly at Julian but nods. “Thank you,” he says coldly before looking back at the window.

Next to Julian, Valentina throws him a glare, as if to say, “What the hell was that?”

Julian shrugs, unable to explain his exact thoughts at the moment. The carriage stops in front of the school entrance and Theo immediately jumps out of the carriage, visibly eager to get away from them as soon as possible. Valentina and Julian follow him and start going up the stairs. The doors are open and the Carrow siblings are waiting for them there, looking rather happy.

“Thank you, Theodore,” Amycus tells his student when he walks past them. “Ten points to Slytherin.”

Theo nods but doesn’t stop walking, heading toward the Great Hall.

“Miss Weger,  _ Monsieur Belfort _ !” Alecto greets them warmly when they reach her. She shakes both of their hands. “It’s a real pleasure to welcome you to our school, today. The Headmaster is busy this morning but he will see you this afternoon. In the meantime, how about a cup of tea? That way we can go over the program for today. How does that sound?”

Valentina smiles her ministry smile and nods. “It sounds brilliant.”

“Perfect. But first, how about a shortstop by the Great Hall? That way we’ll be to show you exactly what kind of behaviours we’re trying to fight.”

“Behaviours?” Julian asks.

Amycus nods as his sister lead the way. “We told you about the so-called DA, right? Well, they’ve sort of… redecorated...” Amycus trails off as they enter the Great Hall.

As soon as they get there, it is like a slap to Julian’s face.

The first thing he registers is the noise. So much more than he expected. Students have finished their breakfast a long time ago but no one seems willing to move and get started with their day. Groups are still huddled around the tables, talking loudly, laughing, and playing games. It isn’t necessarily the kind of atmosphere Valentina and Julian expected but Alecto is quick to explain.

“Students are treating this day like a holiday. The Headmaster decided to cancel classes today so that students could have time to talk to you. Besides we knew they wouldn’t really be able to focus so…”

Julian nods his understanding and turns his attention back on the students. However, the Great Hall abruptly quietens, all eyes staring at Valentina, Julian, and the Carrows.

Valentina wants to reach out to Julian, reassure him that everything is going to be fine but she can’t really do so when everyone, including his friends and girlfriend, is staring at them. Instead, she clears her throat and takes a step forward. 

“Um… Good morning everyone,” she says, making the younger students squeal and whisper excitedly to each other. A few upperclassmen react similarly but aside from that, most students just stare, talking lowly to each other. Valentina tries to ignore the pull of the Gryffindor table, pointedly not looking at it. Next to her, Julian appears to have lost his own battle.

He stands frozen as his eyes stare at the Ravenclaw table, where Adelia, Ash, Sage, and Nova are seated, looking at Valentina with deep frowns on their faces. He tries to tell himself to look away but just can’t, completely startled by the fact that he is standing in the same room as Nova for the first time in months. He knew he would see her today but didn’t expect it to come so quickly. She looks scared and sad and he feels like dying inside, desperately wants to reach out and reassure her but he knows he can’t. 

“Merlin!” Valentina suddenly lets out, effectively making Julian finally look away from Nova. He follows her eyes to see what provoked her reaction and his jaw drops when he sees the red messages painted all over the room.

“What happened?” he asks despite already knowing the answer.

Amycus tells them to wait as Alecto steps forward and addresses the students. “You’ll have plenty of time to meet Miss Weger later. Now get out of here. It’s almost noon. Don’t you have anything else to do with your free day?” Her tone is clearly leaving no room for a response or argument and all the students quickly stand as one, grabbing their stuff and hurrying past them and out of the hall. In the motion, Julian loses sight of Nova and the others. He tries to spot them in the crowd but it proves useless. He thinks he catches a glimpse of Lux at one point but she’s gone before he can take a closer look. Just five minutes later, Julian, Valentina, and the Carrows are all alone in the Great Hall. 

“The ‘DA’,” Alecto then starts explaining, making air quotes with her fingers, “didn’t take well that their mudblood friends were accused of murder. We found the walls like that the day after the  _ Prophet _ announced the deaths of Nyx Astor and Gabriel Nott.”

“You caught them doing it?” Valentina asks. 

“Unfortunately no,” Amycus says, looking genuinely disappointed. “But it wasn’t too hard to guess it was them. Same writing, same method, and same paint as the other messages,” he adds, counting on his fingers. 

Valentina frowns. “The ones you told us about? Back in November?”

“Precisely,” Alecto confirms with a nod.

Valentina’s frown deepens. “But  _ that _ was back in January, then. You haven’t been able to erase it since?”

Amycus looks a bit offended when he replies. “Those bastards are using some kind of- of cursed product or whatever. We tried everything. It stays on. And when we did think we had found a solution, one hour later, the writings had reappeared. Thankfully, they haven’t painted anything else since these,” he says, gesturing toward the walls.

“They haven’t?” Valentina asks, sounding genuinely surprised.

“Of course not,” Alecto retorts with a smirk. “Not after what we did.”

“What did you do?” Julian asks, trying not to sound too scared.

“Not much, unfortunately,” she sighs. “We didn’t have any proof so Snape rejected our first proposition of punishment. In the end, we picked a student at random and used him as an example.”

“At random?” Valentina repeats, raising an eyebrow.

Amycus smirks. “Well… not really. The choice was easy. We picked one of the half-bloods,” he explains. “Cohen, specifically. A Hufflepuff, so less likely to fight back. And he only has his muggle father so if he suddenly felt the need to be a hero, it’ll be easy to stop him.”

Julian feels as if a stone dropped in his stomach but manages to not let it show. arms behind his back, he bawls his fists, digging his nails in his palms to stop himself from doing something stupid.

“What did you do exactly?” Valentina asks tentatively.

“Cruccioed him in front of everyone,” Amycus replies easily. “That way now everyone knows not to cross us. It has been pretty smooth since then. Even Astor calmed down.”

Julian and Valentina look at each other and Alecto must take it as a sign of confusion because she takes over.

“She knew her brother and Nott were traitors. I think that’s what made her more motivated than others to try and fight us. Mostly it’s been her, Longbottom, Weasley, Cohen, and Finnegan. That’s the main group,” she explains. “ _ Dumbledore’s Army _ ,” she says mockingly. “They’ve given us a bit of a hard time, I’ll give them that, but in the end, we’ll get them. Each one of those little pricks. We already got Lovegood but that didn’t seem to stop them. Until we cruccioed Cohen, of course.”

Julian opens his mouth but Valentina steps in before he says something they will probably both regret. “How about I talk to them?”

“What?” Amycus lets out at the same time as Julian.

“I mean, that’s why I’m here, right? To let the kids know that listening to you and Snape is in their best interest. I was at school with Nyx Astor and we were close friends before he decided to join Dumbledore. I’ve known Lux for a long time and I’ve met her friends on several occasions. Maybe if it comes from me, they’ll be more likely to listen? Lux has always looked up to her brother. These kinds of relationships tend to blind people. Now that he is dead, though, I might be able to show her that Nyx only died because he made the wrong choice.”

Alecto and Amycus look at each other, probably weighing the pros and cons. After a moment that seems to last forever, Amycus turns back toward Valentina.

“That actually sounds like a good idea. We could make that happen before you meet the rest of the students.”

“Thank you,” Valentina says with a nod. “One more thing,” she adds, Julian staring at her in confusion. “You know Kai Alpert, right?” When Amycus and Alecto both nod, she goes on, “He’s my cousin. I was hoping if I could see him too.”

Julian tries not to let his surprise show despite wanting to slap some sense into Valentina immediately.

“Of course,” Alecto agrees with a smile. “When do you want to see him?”

“How about now, actually? I haven’t seen him since Christmas, after all.”

“Right,” Amycus replies. “Well, I’ll go get him and Alecto can lead you to her office.”

“Perfect,” Valentina says with a smile, ignoring Julian completely.

Amycus slightly bows in front of Valentina then heads toward the Slytherin common room while Alecto leads Julian and Valentina upstairs. On their way, Julian tries to think of ways to talk to Valentina without Alecto understanding but he has no idea how good Valentina’s French is and his own German is limited to swear words and  _ Ich habe Hunger _ . 

“This is it,” Alecto announces when they have reached the Muggle studies department. “I have to go meet with Snape. You’re okay on your own?”

“Oh, yes, don’t worry,” Valentina says with a smile, still not looking at Julian. 

Alecto walks away and Valentina and Julian enter the office. As soon as the door closes, Julian looks at Valentina like she’s insane.

“What the fuck are you doing, Val?” he says loudly, waving his hands around in frustration.

“I-” she starts but he cuts her off.

“That was so not part of the plan!”

“I know,” she replies, almost whining. “I just… Couldn't help myself? I… I saw them in the Great Hall and I couldn’t just… I had to see them alone.”

“But why?” Julian replies, stretching out the y. “They hate us! They probably think we killed Nyx and Gabe ourselves!”

“But Gabe is not dead!” Valentina replies.

“Yeah! Exactly!” Julian replies, looking slightly unhinged. “What do you plan on doing with this information? Tell Lux and Kai?  _ Not _ tell them?”

“I… I didn’t really think about that,” Valentina admits which makes Julian scream behind his closed lips.

“Yeah! Clearly!” he exclaims before pausing and sighing. “I… Val... This is already hard enough, I can’t… What am I supposed to do when my best friend, whom I haven’t seen in ages and who’s been  _ cruccioed _ in front of the whole school, comes in, uh?”

“It’ll be like at Christmas,” Valentina replies. “I- I’ll do the talking and you… you’ll know that they’re okay.”

“Yeah, and you’ll convince them that the Carrows are good people and that the people they love, Anya, Selene, Gabe, and Nyx, are all evil people who deserve to die?”

“Actually…”

“What?” Julian asks, looking terrified now, feeling like he knows here Valentina is going and hating it.

“I thought that maybe… If the Carrows don’t stick around, I could…”

“Tell the truth?” Julian completes. “No fucking way.”

“Not flat out tell them but perhaps… hint at it?”

Julian stares at Valentina feeling like everything is falling apart around them and the worst part is that he has no idea  _ why _ . “Val, you… For months now you’ve told me that the cover was the priority. You’ve forbidden me to reach out to the DA and you-” he starts then stop, feeling tears pool at his eyes. “We  _ fled _ that night,” he says, his voice breaking around the word night, tears sliding down his cheeks. “We fled and-”

“And Nyx died,” Valentina says softly, her own eyes watering. “Exactly. I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since then. I abandoned him and he died. And Gabe is most likely next. I can’t… I… I was wrong! I was wrong, the cover is not the priority. The Resistance is. And if I have to blow my cover to make sure that the fight goes on, then I’ll blow it.”

“But is it a good idea to risk it right now?” Julian asks, trying to wipe out his tears. “I was wrong too, you know. We can’t let our personal feelings cloud our judgements. Kingsley organized that meeting because he knew we missed our friends. If I hadn’t been so adamant about seeing them, they wouldn’t have left Bill’s and Nyx… And Nyx-” Julian doesn’t finish his sentence and starts crying in earnest, Valentina right there with him.

They both stumbled into each other’s arms, breaking down. They were on edge the moment they walked inside the castle and that plus seeing their friends plus their talk didn’t really help their nerves.

They’re both not ready for the door to open at that moment. They jump apart and stare at Kai who is staring right back at them, with a confused frown.

“Um, I can come back later,” he says, looking slightly disgusted when his eyes land on Julian.

“No,” Valentina urges him, trying to pretend they weren’t crying in each other arms just two seconds ago. She not so subtly wipes off her tears while Julian turns around and goes to stand as far away from them as possible.

“You wanted to see me?” Kai asks tentatively.

“Yes,” Valentina confirms, sitting down in the couch area of the office and gesturing to the seat in front of her. “Please sit down?”

Kai looks at the seat for a bit before sitting down.

“How are you doing?” Valentina asks gently.

The concern and tenderness in her voice must scare Kai off because he looks at her strangely. “I’m fine,” he says coldly, sitting up straight.

“You’re friend with Theodore Nott, right?” she asks then, trying to sound more casual.

Kai frowns but nods. “Yeah. Why?”

“Were you close to his cousin too?” Valentina asks tentatively.

Kai looks at her suspiciously then asks, “Did Lux ask you to do this?”

“What? No! Of course not,” Valentina quickly replies. “I haven’t even spoken to her yet. I was just wondering-”

“Well I didn’t really know him so…” he says, crossing his arms over his chest and lying back.

“But you’re friends with Lux…” Valentina prompts clumsily.

“No.” Kai replies firmly immediately.

“We saw you at Christmas, dude,” Julian steps in, walking closer, deciding to come to Valentina’s rescue.

Kai opens and closes his mouth. “What- What is this? An interrogation?”

“No, I’m just asking about your life,” Valentina explains. “You’re my cousin. I worry about you, it’s normal.”

“And you worry about me being friends with Lux?” Kai asks, not really buying it.

Julian steps in once more before Valentina can say anything. “She does have quite the reputation here.”

Kai looks between them before shrugging. “We have our moments,” he admits. “But she’s  _ not _ my friend.”

Valentina nods. “So you… Do you listen to what she has to say?”

“I’m not part of the DA if that’s what you’re asking,” Kai retorts, annoyed.

“No, I know,” Valentina replies. “But do you believe them?”

“Are you asking  _ me _ ,” Kai says pointedly, “the son of two Ministry members if I believe that the Ministry is evil and killed Gabriel and Nyx?”

Valentina stares longly at him before answering. “I’m asking  _ you _ , Kai, if you believe what Lux has to say.”

Kai stares back at Valentina, thinking. He isn’t Lux’s biggest fan right now but he isn’t going to pretend he doesn’t remember all of their talks. Especially not the one they had in Gabriel’s bedroom about Valentina. And while he isn’t sure he trusts either Lux or Valentina, he knows he doesn’t trust the Ministry. And as he told Lux back at Christmas, he doesn’t think Valentina is really evil. Just… misguided. That can happen to anyone, right?

“I don’t know,” he eventually says. Truthfully.

Valentina and Julian exchange a look before looking back at Kai who genuinely looks scared.

“Okay,” Valentina says with a nod.

“Was that all you wanted to ask me?” Kai asks, already standing up.

Valentina and Julian exchange another look then turn back toward him.

“Yeah, you can go.”

Kai nods then quickly exits the room. Once the door is closed, Valentina lets out a long sigh and Julian comes to sit down next to her.

“I so wanted to say something,” he breathes out, closing his eyes.

“I know,” Valentina replies, grabbing his hand and squeezing it. “Me too.”


	27. February 18, 1998 - 73 days before the Battle. (part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOO! I'm back! And I can't believe it was VIGD first year anniversary last month and I completely missed it. Anyway, here is finally chapter 27!  
> Valentina and Julian (as Julien) are in Hogwarts and they spoke to Kai...

Kai doesn’t feel well. All morning, he watches the rest of the student body enjoying themselves, laughing more than they ever did these last few months, acting like nothing had changed since last year. He tries to play along, stays with Theo, Blaise, Pansy, and Millicent, and pretends everything is fine but it isn’t working very well. He can’t get his talk with Valentina from earlier out of his head and by the time lunch ends, he just wants to hide in the library and never come back out.

Eventually, that’s what he decides to do. He is hanging out in the common room with the rest of the Slytherins when he suddenly stands up and grabs his stuff, mumbling that he has some homework to finish. Before any of his friends can say anything, he is already heading toward the entrance of the common room.

Just as he expected and hoped, the library is empty and quiet when he gets there. Slightly relieved, he walks toward his usual table and settles there, getting out his copy of _Break with a Banshee,_ a bottle of ink, and a feather to annotate it. He barely starts reading when his bubble is already burst. 

“Damn you walk fast,” Lux sighs as she sits in front of him, looking out of breath, a few bangs of blonde hair falling in front of her eyes.

Kai tenses up as soon as he registers her presence and glares at her, hoping she will quickly take the hint and leave before he has to verbally tell her. Lux, however, has never been one to accommodate people and either doesn’t take the hint or ignores it entirely.

“How are you?” she asks casually as if nothing has happened since the last time they spoke. As if Kai has never yelled monstrosities at her in the bathroom and asked her to never even look his way again.

Kai stares at her, trying to remain calm, and Lux looks back, unbothered. The library has always been his sanctuary - after the Quidditch pitch - and he really hates her for coming to annoy him _here_ of all places.

On the flip side, the library has always been his sanctuary and despite his anger at Lux right now, there’s no way he’ll get ban because of her. So instead of yelling and cursing, he says slowly, “What are you doing here, Astor?”

Lux shrugs. “You had to know I would show up at some point.”

Yes. Of course Kai knew Lux would come talk to him. He has known since the moment the Carrows announced Valentina was coming to the castle. But knowing something is going to happen doesn’t make it okay.

“What do you want?” he asks her tiredly, knowing she is here for a reason. The sooner they’ll talk about it, the faster she’ll be out of his hair. He hopes.

Lux seems to hesitate but only for a moment. “You spoke to Valentina,” she says, trying to sound casual. It’s not a question and Kai frowns because of that.

“How do you know?” he asks suspiciously.

Lux studies his face then easily replies, “Sage told me.”

Kai arcs one of his eyebrows in confusion. “You’re spying on me now?”

Lux shrugs again. “Yeah.”

That takes Kai aback and he stares at her even more dumbfounded, having not expected such an honest response from her. “Sure you’re not obsessed with me?”

Lux smiles a little and shakes her head. Kai doesn’t know why she acts so calm and detached when for him, it’s pretty clear that he is not happy with her presence right now. 

“I’m sure. I just worry about you and you said you didn’t want me near you so I had to find other ways to keep an eye on you.”

“And yet, here you are,” Kai replies, annoyed.

“Yeah but only because I needed to talk to you.”

Kai stares at her, debating on what to do. He could tell her to fuck off and deep down, he knows that Lux would listen if he made it clear enough that he wasn’t joking. He kind of wants to know what Lux wants, though, so he sighs and puts his book away.

“What is it?” he asks, already regretting it when Lux opens her mouth into a wide, surprised smile. “I’m listening, I never said I would answer,” he adds sternly, making Lux roll her eyes.

“Fine. I was just wondering what Valentina told you exactly.”

“Pass,” Kai replies immediately, looking away and pretending to go back to his book.

Lux quickly reaches forward to stop him, though, almost pleading. “No, Kai, please!”

“It’s none of your business, Astor,” he replies firmly. Technically, he is lying but she doesn’t have to know that.

“She’ll want to see me at some point,” Lux explains. “I just want to know what I have to expect.”

“Probably a stern remonstrance about how you should listen to the Carrows and stop painting messages on the walls?” Kai offers with a shrug. “Something like that.”

Lux gives him an unimpressed look. “Kai. Seriously. What did she want?”

“Will you leave me alone if I tell you?” Kai asks then. When Lux eagerly nods, he sighs. “Fine. She wanted to talk about you, actually.”

“Me?” Lux repeats, visibly having not expected that. When Kai nods, she frowns. “Why would she ask you about me?”

Kai shrugs. “Apparently, she’s worried about my acquaintances.”

“Meaning?” Lux asks, raising an eyebrow.

“Meaning she was worried about you and I being friends.”

His answer seems to take Lux by surprise as she lies back against her chair, letting out a small, soft, “Oh.” She looks down, looking pretty shaken. “Well, I-”

“Don’t worry,” Kai cuts her off. Lux looks up, looking confused. “I assured her it wasn’t the case.”

Lux stares at Kai, looking slightly annoyed but not hurt. Don’t get her wrong, she was hurt that day, in the bathroom, when Kai lashed out on her for no real reason. Now, however, in retrospect, she knows he is only trying to push her away because deep down, he is hurting. She is also aware that if he really didn’t want to see her, he wouldn’t be talking to her right now. So she lets him have his fun.

“Was that all she wanted to know?” she asks, finding it weird that Valentina asked Kai to come to her, only to talk about Lux. 

“Apparently,” Kai replies as he shrugs, as perplexed as her about all of this.

“Okay,” Lux concludes with a nod, looking disappointed. She starts to get up and Kai thought he would be pleased to finally see her leave but there is this nagging feeling down in his stomach that makes him reach out to her.

“Wait.”

Lux stops in her tracks and stares at him, looking both hopeful and nonplussed. “What?”

“There’s… Actually, there’s something else,” he says, almost shyly. He doesn’t necessarily _want_ to talk to Lux but he has been thinking about it since he left Alecto Carrow’s office and there isn’t really anyone else he could talk with about this.

“What?” Lux asks again, settling back into her chair.

Kai avoids her eyes, staring instead at his hands, something very un-Kai-ly. “She asked me about Gabe, too,” he says softly. In fact, it’s so low that Lux thinks she heard him wrong at first.

“What?” she says softly for the third time.

“I don’t know,” Kai admits with a shrug. “She just… she asked me how I was doing.”

“Regarding Gabe?” Lux prompts, trying to understand why Valentina would ask.

“I think, yeah,” Kai replies. “It was weird. She asked me if I knew him. If we were close-”

“Do you think she knows?” Lux cuts him off, making Kai look back at her. “About…” Lux adds before trailing off, not wanting to upset Kai again. They’re talking right now and Lux doesn’t want to jeopardize that.

“How would she know?” Kai retorts coldly, already closing off. _So much for not jeopardizing it..._

“I don’t know,” Lux replies, raising both hands to remind him she didn’t do anything wrong. Not regarding this. “Maybe the Notts know.”

Kai opens his mouth to reply something but no sound comes out. They both stare at each other, contemplating that possibility. “How would _they_ know?” Kai asks after a moment, looking scared.

Lux shrugs, then her eyes widen in shock and apprehension. “What if they found the boxes?”

Kai seems to contemplate that idea but quickly shakes his head. “Nah. If they could find them, they would have found them much earlier. Gabriel has been gone for months now.”

Lux shrugs. “I don’t know but I hope you’re right. I don’t want to think about what Mrs Keita would do with Gabe’s drawing,” she says. 

Kai nods absent-mindedly, rubbing his sternum. 

“I’ll talk to Valentina,” Lux says with a determined nod. Kai slowly looks back at her, still rubbing his sternum. “She’s desperate for my forgiveness. She’ll probably tell me anything I want.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure if I were you,” Kai retorts. “She works for the Notts and is here for the Carrows. Try not to forget that.”

Lux tries to hold back her smile as she stands up again, for good this time. “Aw, Kai, you’re worrying about me?”

“I’d just like to go a year without having one of my classmates killed, that’s all,” he replies, reaching back for his book, clearly showing Lux that he is done talking.

“I won’t get killed,” Lux tells him. “I promise.”

Kai purposely ignores her but Lux doesn’t mind. She knows that he cares. 

***

“Lux, you’re driving me insane,” Neville says firmly as he slams his hand over the pen she keeps tapping on the table.

Lux startles out of her thoughts, taking her eyes off of the clock, and gives Neville an apologetic smile. “Sorry, Neville.”

“What are you so anxious about, anyway?” Seamus asks.

“Yeah, I thought you didn’t want to see Valentina,” Ginny adds.

They’re sitting in a corner of the Common Room, planning the DA’s next operation, while Lux, very loudly, waits for Valentina to ask to see her.

“I don’t,” she replies but neither of them really believe her. They know Lux is a sucker for confrontation and that she has a lot of pent up energy mixed with boiling anger waiting to be released, and Valentina is the perfect target for it. “But I know she’ll ask to see me.”

“Didn’t she just saw you at Christmas, though?” Seamus points out before writing down something in front of Ginny. “Shouldn’t it be Ezra’s turn, now?”

Lux goes to reply when the portrait opens and McGonagall appears inside.

“Astor?” she calls out, looking annoyed.

“Yes, professor?” Lux calls back. She lets her chair fall back on its four feet and stands up quickly.

“Miss Weger wants to see you,” McGonagall informs her, looking very offended by the fact that she was asked to deliver that message.

Lux gives her friends a “told you so” look, and they all shake their heads, in a mix of annoyance and amusement.

“Be careful,” Neville reminds her but Lux ignores him. She heads toward McGonagall and follows her outside without a word. On her way, she hears first and second years whispering to each other about how lucky she is. She kind of wants to remind them that her brother and her best friend were murdered by the same people Valentina works for but she doesn’t think this kind of comment would go over well with McGonagall standing right there. So instead, she remains silent and ignores them.

“Do you know why she wants to see you, Astor?” McGonagall asks her almost as soon as they start walking toward Alecto Carrow’s office. 

Lux isn’t very surprised by the question but doesn’t really know what to say. To be honest, she doesn’t really know exactly what Valentina is going to say to her but she has a small idea. So she shrugs and says, “I think so, Professor. Valentina was friend with my brother.”

“Ah yes, of course,” McGonagall nods. “I remember them. Weasley, Caulfield, Weger, and your brother. Never one without the others. I have to be honest with you, Astor, I was very surprised by the… _choices_ ,” - her tone is disdainful as she says it - “Weger made. I never expected her to -”

“Become a Death Eater?” Lux offers bitterly. “Yeah, me neither.”

McGonagall gives her a pointed look but there’s understanding in it too that reassures Lux. “I meant ‘so thoroughly work for the Ministry’,” McGonagall corrects her but even she doesn’t sound like she believes it. She pauses then, before adding, more softly. “I hope you’ll be careful around her, Astor. She has friends in very high places these days.”

“I know,” Lux replies when they stop in front of the office. “But that’s exactly why I won’t refrain from telling her exactly what I think. I know you want us to stay safe, Professor, but I won’t pretend I don’t hate them and what they are doing to us. They’re threatening the lives of too many people I love to let it slide.”

“And I understand that, Astor,” McGonagall replies truthfully. “But try and think about which way you’ll be more helpful to the cause you’re fighting for. By dying for it or by staying alive to see it through.”

“I get that, Professor, I really do,” Lux tries to reassure her, “but you don’t have to worry. Valentina won’t do anything to me.”

“And how can you be so sure?” McGonagall replies, still not knocking on the door to let their presence be known.

Lux smirks then reaches forward to give the door two firm knocks. “Because she’s scared of me.” _Or rather, what I stand for_ , she specifies in her head. 

McGonagall gives an alarmed look. Lux guesses she must think she is insane. She isn’t, of course. Of course, that statement is a tad dramatic but that’s the vibe she was going for. Truth is, Lux, amid her anger, spotted something in Valentina’s eyes the last time they spoke. A scared desperation for forgiveness and a deep understanding that Lux will always refuse to give it to her. And with Nyx dead and Valentina here, she knows that this glimmer of plea will be stronger than ever.

It’s Amycus who opens the door. He smirks at McGonagall and Lux when he sees them and opens the door wider. Inside the office, there’s Ezra, standing firmly to the side, arms crossed over his chest, looking determined. Sitting on the couch there are Valentina and that guy she came with at Christmas, looking rather stiff. 

“Thank you, Minerva,” Amycus says as he lets Lux into the room. She quickly walks over to Ezra and immediately starts to talk to him in a low voice. McGonagall goes to follow her but before she can follow suit, however, Amycus steps in front of her. “I believe Miss Weger can handle herself now. May I accompany you back to your office, Minerva? I actually wanted to talk to you about something.”

McGonagall pinches her lips and looks over at Ezra and Lux to evaluate the risks. They both ignore her, staring at Valentina in quiet anger. “Will your sister attend this meeting?” McGonagall asks.

Amycus shakes his head. “Nah. We have understood that Astor and Cohen were determined to resist us so we thought Miss Weger could step in with her experience and legacy. My sister is currently handling an issue with a group of fourth-years who believed it was appropriate to not hand out their essays on time.”

“Right,” McGonagall replies coldly. “Remember what I told you, Astor,” she tells Lux before Amycus slams the door closed between them.

The sound the door makes as it closes resonates inside the quiet office. Valentina stares at it for a few seconds before she takes a deep breath and stands up, walking toward Lux and Ezra. Behind her, the guy remains seated and quiet, as if waiting for something.

“Lux. Ezra. Thank you for coming in,” she greets them with a small, tentative smile she knows won’t be returned.

Ezra raises an eyebrow at her in response and says coldly, “It’s not like we had a choice,” already setting the tone for the meeting. Next to him, Lux snorts and smirks, almost proudly, hoping it will annoy Valentina.

It doesn’t however. She prepared herself for this kind of welcoming and knew it would go this way. So instead of recoiling, she presses on, keeping her Ministry mask on.

“Well, I’ve been told you weren’t the most obedient these days so I’m glad you didn’t make a run for it, today,” Valentina replies calmly.

“Obedient?” Lux repeats through gritted teeth.

Next to her, Ezra smiles but it’s completely joyless. “Well, when you get picked at random to get tortured in front of the whole school, it really makes you more... _obedien_ t, as you say.”

That’s another blow Valentina was expecting and she prays that behind her, Julian is doing alright because she doesn’t think she has enough strength to handle both herself and him. Focused on keeping a straight face, Valentina replies slowly, “You knew the rules, you played the game, and you got caught.”

“Oh, you can’t be serious,” Lux sighs out, rolling her eyes and starting to pace behind Ezra, knowing he wants to handle this himself.

“Are you saying that I deserved it?” Ezra asks Valentina, eyes wide open in horror.

“I’m just saying that you knew what the Carrows were capable of and-”

“We weren’t caught, though,” Lux steps in, no longer able to remain quiet. She comes to stand next to Ezra again and adds, “We weren’t caught. They called the entire school and picked Ezra because his dad is a muggle. We know that, the Carrows know that and _you_ know that.”

Valentina looks at Lux and shakes her head. “You think you’re so clever but you’re not. The Carrows know exactly who is part of the DA. You’ve already been punished several times. It didn’t take much to guess that Ezra was involved in painting those messages.”

“What, you’re keeping tabs on us, now?” Lux retorts with a frown.

“I worry about you,” Valentina says truthfully.

“Oh, that’s rich,” Ezra replies, looking away. “And you worry about us while working for the Notts? Great, thanks. I’m sure Nyx and Gabriel are grateful for that too. Oh wait…” he trails off, glaring at Valentina.

This time, the blow does make her stammer and it’s exactly what Lux was waiting for. She feels her heart quickens, both at the mention of Nyx and Gabriel and knowing that the fight she desperately craves for is coming.

“That’s not- You don’t-” Valentina clumsily tries to reply but she feels pushed into a corner, overwhelmed by what Lux and Ezra _think_ they know and what she _does_ know. She doesn’t know what to say or how to react, crushed by her guilt regarding Nyx’s death, the souvenir of Julian’s anger and hatred when they learned, the anger and sorrow in Ezra’s and Lux’s eyes - accusing her of something she really feels responsible for - and the knowledge that Gabriel is still alive but getting tortured in his own home. “It wasn’t-” she starts again but Julian cuts her off this time, getting up and joining their circle.

“You have no idea what you’re talking,” he says coldly. His eyes have gone dark and for once, he doesn’t look like he’s uncomfortable in his tall, polyjuiced body, but rather empowered by it. As he towers over the group, he looks at Lux and Ezra like never before - a mix of animosity and authority that Valentina only ever saw directed toward her.

“I’m sorry?” Lux asks, looking disdainfully at Julian, offended by his interruption. 

“Julien…” Valentina whispers, trying to reach out to stop him. She didn’t expect him to step in like that, especially not to stand up _against_ Lux and Ezra, and even less so to defend _her_ , of all people. 

Julian ignores her however and keeps on staring at Lux and Ezra. “You have no idea what you’re talking about,” he says again. “You have no idea what’s going on out there, or what Valentina is doing exactly, or even what happened, that night.”

Everyone remains silent then, the weight of Julian’s words downing on them.

Lux pales immediately and when she speaks again, her voice is a little broken and her eyes are on Valentina. “But of course, you do.”

Valentina looks at Lux pleadingly. “Lux… Nyx’s death-”

“Was an assassination,” Lux replies easily, her voice firmer. “Gabriel and Nyx were assassinated. They were both killed by the Notts so they could be used in their anti-muggle-born propaganda. They were killed to make people believe that people like Anya and Selene and Julian were criminals. And I don’t know what’s worse. That you don’t seem to realize that or that you do but it doesn’t bother you.”

“ _Of course it_ -” Valentina starts replying but she stops herself halfway through, realizing what she was about to say. Schooling her face, she says more calmly. “Nyx’s death… and Gabriel’s,” she adds quickly, “were tragedies. But as Julien said. There’s more at play here than you realize. You can’t beat the Carrows, Lux. Not like that. You’re being careless. I know the type of punishment the Carrows give out here and it will only escalate from now on. Vinicius Nott and his cabinet are allowing more and more violence and every other department is following in his footsteps. The lines between simple school stupidity and actual law-breaking are blurring and you are not helping. Besides you’re of age now, Lux. If the Carrows get tired of dealing with you, they _will_ hand you over to Umbridge.”

Lux tenses at her words. Next to her, Ezra frowns. “Is that a threat?” he asks.

“No, it’s a warning,” Valentina replies sadly. She looks at Julian, then back at Lux and Ezra, and says, very seriously, “Nyx wouldn’t want you to risk your life like that.” 

Lux reacts immediately. “Enough!” she practically spits at Valentina, red in the face, almost shaking from rage. “Who do you think you are, telling me what Nyx would want? You have no idea what Nyx would want!”

“Lux,” Valentina tries to calm her down. “Nyx was my friend and I-”

“Fuck you,” Lux says enunciate clearly. “You’re working with the very same people that killed him and Gabe, so don’t you fucking dare pretending you ever gave a shit about him,” Lux says loudly, tears forming in her eyes, martelling her finger in the air.

“Lux,” Ezra says, reaching out to her, realizing that she is losing it, but Lux pushes him away.

“Don’t! I don’t care that she’ll have me tortured or killed for standing up to her! She betrayed us!” she tells Ezra before looking back at Valentina. “You _betrayed_ us! You betrayed _him_ and he died! My _brother_ , my only family died and as far as I’m concerned, you’re responsible for it.”

Julian goes to reply but Valentina stops him. “Don’t. She’s right.”

“Val…” Julian lets out, shocked by Valentina letting her guard down like that.

“She’s right,” she says again before turning toward Ezra and Lux, both of them completely stunned by her admission. “You’re right, Lux,” she adds, more honest right now than she has ever been in two years. “Perhaps I did play a part in Nyx’s and Gabriel’s death. But I will regret these choices for the rest of my life. I never wanted anything to happen to them,” she explains as tears start rolling down her cheeks.

Completely dumbstruck, Lux is speechless, mouth gaping and tears gathering under her eyes. Next to her, Ezra looks also on the verge of crying. His arms wrapped around Lux, he asks, “But… why?” Valentina and Julian look at him, confused, so Ezra explains himself. “Why did they die? Why would the Notts kill them and not Anya and Selene? Weren’t they together?”

Julian and Valentina glance at each other, silently deciding what to say now that they’ve already confirmed most of their theories.

“Perhaps you’ll learn one day what went down that night,” Julian explains, looking sadly at his best friends, “but I’m afraid that right now, we can’t give you the answers that you want. The only thing I can tell you is that the Notts…” he trails off, looking at Valentina before finishing, “The Notts are only loyal to their family. No one else.”

Ezra clenches his jaw, holding Lux tighter, “Gabriel was their family.”

Julian nods obviously. “Exactly.”

Lux wipes her tears with her sleeve and straightens up. She looks at Valentina, torn between her rage and desire to know more. After a bit, she shyly asks, “Val... Anya and Selene, do you know… anything? Are they alive? Are they okay?”

Valentina is long past caring about her cover now, so she decides to be honest and shakes her head no. “I’m sorry Lux. I wish I could tell you but we have no idea where they went.”

Lux nods in understanding. “Okay, well, I guess that’s it then. Can we go, now?”

Valentina nods. “Yes, you can go. But Lux, I really want you to know that I would do anything to erase that night and bring Nyx back, Lux, I swear, I-”

“Don’t,” Lux says firmly, the name of her brother immediately reminding her of her anger. “We’re done now. From now on, I never want to see you again. Don’t try to contact me, or Ezra, or anyone else. You made your choices. You may regret them but what’s done is done and you can’t undo it so deal with it.” She pauses, before remembering her talk with Kai from earlier. “Oh and one more thing. That also goes for Kai. You don’t write to him, you don’t go see him, you stay the hell away from him, and you never mention Gabriel to him again, got it?”

Lux, Julian, and Ezra expect her to protest but Valentina nods in agreement. “Alright.”

“Good,” Lux says before turning around and walking away, letting Ezra give Valentina his own piece of mind.

“I’m so sorry, Ezra,” Valentina tells him softly between two sniffs.

Ezra looks at the door for a bit before turning back toward Valentina, nodding and looking defeated. “Yeah. Me too,” he says bitterly before following Lux outside.

Once alone, Julian and Valentina don’t talk immediately, both of them lost in their own thoughts. After a while, however, Julian lets out a long sigh and runs a hand over his face in tiredness. “We really fucked up, uh?”

“Yeah, we did,” Valentina confirms before turning to look at him. “You were right. We shouldn’t have come.”

“No, we wanted to see them so we did. We shouldn’t regret that, especially since we don’t know what will happen when we go get Gabe.”

Valentina nods before asking the question that has burnt her tongue since Christmas. “Do you think they’ll ever forgive me?”

Julian tilts his head in sadness, understanding Valentina’s fear. He realizes that the moment he decided to trust Valentina and to remain by her side after Nyx’s death, he also signed the possible end of his friendship with Lux and the others. “I honestly don’t know,” he tells her truthfully. “But we’re in this together now, Val. You’re not alone anymore. Throwing yourself under the bus like that…” he trails off with a sigh.

“I couldn’t stand there, knowing what I know,” Valentina explains. “I couldn’t look at Lux like that, and pretend everything was fine… I had to say something.” She pauses then adds, “But Julien, standing up for me like that, you really didn’t have to…”

Julian lets out a short laugh and helpless smile. “Of course I did. Standing there and listening to Lux talk to you like that… Knowing what I know,” he repeats with a knowing look, “I couldn’t not step in.” He bites his lower lip then adds, “I… I hate everything about what happened that night, Val, but I don’t hate you. I can’t hate you,” he finishes with a small shrug.

Valentina can’t help herself then. She falls into Julian’s arms, in tears.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Valentina is under a lot of pressure and is gonna cry a lot throughout this whole story, just be aware of that. I'll update next week with chapter 28 (I have chapters 29 and 30 ready to go, chapter 31 is being read by my amazing beta-reader, and I just finished writing chapter 32 so updates should come more often now)


	28. February 18, 1998 - 73 days before the Battle. (part 3)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last part of this day at Hogwarts for Valentina and Julian! Not my favourite chapter but here you go... (it does have a pretty sweet scene with Aberforth)

The Great Hall is abuzz when the clock strikes 6. Every student and staff member, aside from Snape who is nowhere to be seen, has gathered there to listen to Valentina Weger’s speech before dinner.

At the Slytherin table, Kai sits with Theo, Blaise, Pansy, and Millicent, the last three demanding to know where he has been all day.

“You’ve been acting pretty weird lately, mate,” Blaise tells him when Kai only replies “Library.”

“Yeah, what are you hiding, Alpert?” Millicent asks him suspiciously.

Next to her, Pansy is fuming. “Were you alone at the library?” she tries to sound casual but it falls flat.

“ _Yes_ ,” Kai replies annoyingly. It’s not really a lie. He went there alone and Lux didn’t stay much so mostly, he was alone.

“Come on, guys, leave him be. We’re all tired and we all need some space sometimes,” Theo jumps in.

When the others look away, Kai nods at Theo and mouths “Thank you.”

“Welcome,” Theo mouths back. 

The group falls back in conversation about possible vacation plans but Kai quickly clocks out, unconsciously looking for Lux on the other side of the room. Next to him, someone starts coughing. He briefly glances their way before doing a double-take and smirking when he sees that it is Sage and that she is sneaking glances toward him.

“Writing a report for Astor?” he asks with a knowing smirk.

Sage winces but immediately relaxes when she realizes that Kai doesn’t look mad. “How long have you known?” she asks sheepishly.

“Only a few hours, don’t worry,” he reassures her. He glances toward his friends who aren’t paying attention to him and slightly turns toward Sage to engage in a conversation. Sage seems surprised by it but welcomes the gesture. She has been curious to get to know him since she noticed how much Lux seems to care about him. “You’re good,” Kai tells her. “I only found out because Lux told me.”

His reply makes Sage frown. “Why would she tell you that?”

Kai shrugs. “If I knew why Lux does what she does, I’ll have a much easier life,” he half-jokes.

Sage smiles knowingly, perfectly understanding the feeling. “I bet,” she answers. They all would. “Can I ask you a question?” she asks tentatively then, not sure if Kai is ready to completely open up to her. 

“Sure,” Kai replies easily, “but I can’t guarantee you I’ll answer.”

“That’s fair,” Sage acknowledges with a nod. “Lux and you… were you really a couple?”

Kai smiles and takes a long sip of pumpkin juice before asking, “Did you ask her?”

“I did, yeah,” Sage confirms. “She said that what was between you and her was no one else’s business but that it wasn’t whatever the school thought.”

“I see,” Kai replies absent-mindedly, his eyes darting toward the Gryffindor table once more. “Well, I don’t really have anything else to add to that,” he says as he looks back at Sage. 

“What about now? Are you still friends? It’s clear that Lux cares about you,” Sage tells him. Kai must realize that. Everyone else does, at least those who pay attention to them. It drives Pansy insane, confuses the rest of Kai’s friends, and infuriates Adelia and Nova to no extent. Ash and Sage, however, are mostly curious. Sage and her friends often talk about it, Nova usually more bitterly than the rest of them. She pretends that she doesn’t care but they all know that deep down, she’s jealous, not understanding why Kai is worthy of Lux’s forgiveness and not her. The same probably goes for Adelia but she has always been better at lying.

“Lux and I aren’t friends,” Kai informs her. To his surprise, Sage seems to believe him.

“No, I thought not,” she agrees. “I mean if I believe what everyone says, you guys fought pretty hard in the bathroom and I don’t think Lux would ask me to spy on you if you guys still talked to each other.”

“Even before that, we weren’t really friends,” Kai quickly replies, not wanting to talk about the bathroom fight. He won’t admit it out loud but he’s ashamed of the way he spoke to Lux that day. “Lux is more like… this annoying presence that I can’t seem to get rid of. No matter what I do or say or where I go, she’s always there and I just can’t escape her, you know? So it’s not like I hate her or something but more that she’s a pain in my arse.”

“So more like a sibling, then?” Sage asks him teasingly.

“No,” Kai denies immediately, laughing. “Like an annoying pet I never asked for.”

Sage shakes her head, laughing a little at Kai’s words. She is kind of surprised by the fact that he doesn’t seem to mind talking to her but quickly realize that neither of them, before Lux, ever actually tried.

“Did Valentina end up speaking to her?” Kai asks after a bit.

Sage keeps her eyes on him as she slowly replies, “She did… Why?”

“Just wondering,” Kai replies with a shrug. “Lux seemed pretty anxious about it.”

Sage grimaces. “Yeah, it didn’t go too well apparently. Ash saw Ezra and her leave Girl Carrow’s office and they were apparently in tears.”

“You haven’t talked to her since?” Kai asks with a frown.

“Nope. Why?” she asks in suspicion.

“I don’t know. I thought you could spy on her for me,” Kai replies easily.

“You’re kidding right?” Sage replies with a taken aback laugh. 

“Of course not,” Kai replies truthfully. “She wants to spy on me? I’ll spy on her right back.”

Rather than being offended, Sage starts laughing, shaking her head. “Can’t you two just talk like normal people?”

“And where’s the fun in that?” Kai replies cheekily.

Sage keeps quietly laughing, biting her lip in amusement. “I think I understand why Lux likes you, now,” she tells him. Her smile softens, looking almost sad.

Kai raises an eyebrow. “Oh yeah? And why’s that?”

“You remind me of Gabriel, sometimes.”

The sentence is like a slap to the face. Kai stares at Sage, dumbfounded, and for a moment, Sage believes she offended him.

“I mean… I don’t know, you’ve got this… this _vibe_ that just… reminds me of him. I didn’t realize it was a… bad thing?” she ends up asking, not too sure she understands why Kai would look so offended by that idea.

“It’s not,” Kai immediately replies. “I just never realized that. I… er… I don’t really know what to say,” he admits.

“It’s fine. You don’t really have to say anything, it’s just an observation.”

Kai nods, staring at nothing in particular, unconsciously rubbing his sternum. 

Sage notices his lost look and looks sadly at him. “I kind of forgot but you must have known him, right? Gabriel? You two were prefects.”

“I knew him, yeah,” Kai replies, still rubbing. “Not as much as you or Astor, obviously but I knew him. He… He was an okay guy,” he tells Sage with a clumsy smile.

“He was,” Sage softly agrees, nodding.

Kai nods as well, then dares to ask. “So you think Lux is hung up on me because I remind her of Gabriel?”

Sage shrugs. “I don’t know, I could be wrong. But I know Lux and she’s prone to fixation. You two began talking around the time Gabriel disappeared if I understood correctly and she asked me to spy on you right after we heard about Gabriel and Nyx so I thought that maybe…”

“I see,” Kai cuts her off. His eyes land on the Gryffindor table once more and this time, he spots Lux, sitting between Seamus and Lavender, in front of Ginny, listening intently to what Neville is telling them, making the mental note to confront her about it.

At the Hufflepuff table, Ezra tries to focus on Ernie and Hannah but it’s hard when Nova keeps shifting next to him, probably trying to get his attention. After two excruciating minutes, Ezra eventually snaps, his patience already running thin since talking to Valentina.

“What is it, Nova?” he asks, annoyed, purposely staring at his plate.

To his surprise, Nova doesn’t lie, doesn’t stammer, doesn’t pretend she wasn’t paying attention to him. Instead, she goes straight to the point after taking a long breath.

“Ash told us you and Lux had seen Valentina.”

Ezra huffs and smiles joylessly. “Is it me or do rumours keep travelling faster and faster around here.”

“What did she want?” Nova asks, ignoring him.

Ezra shakes his head and still doesn’t look at Nova. “It’s none of your business.”

“Oh come on, Ezra,” Nova pleads. “I get that Lux and you are mad at me but that doesn’t mean I don’t worry about you two, still. Don’t you think it’s time you stop hating me?”

“We don’t hate you, Nova,” Ezra replies tiredly.

“Oh yeah?” Nova retorts bitterly. “Then why won’t you even look at me, then?”

Ezra pauses then sighs. He makes a big show of turning to straddle the bench and properly face Nova. “There. Happy?”

“Ezra…”

“What? You’re the one who rejected us. Not me, not Lux. _You_. So make up your mind already.”

Nova frowns. “I never rejected you-” she starts but Ezra cuts her off.

“Oh _please_ . You tried to stop us from going to help the DA,” Ezra starts counting on his fingers, “you _threatened_ us that night remember? You said all those stuff about Lux manipulating me and Anya and you then spilled all of our secrets to Adelia, Ash, and Sage. You’ve kept making Lux and I feel like shit for wanting to fight, and don’t get me started on what you said about her brother…” he trails off and at least Nova has the decency to look remorseful.

“I recognize that I’ve said some stuff I shouldn’t have but for the rest, you can’t blame me for not wanting to risk my life like you have. They _tortured_ you, Ezra.”

“I’m well aware of that, thank you,” Ezra replies sternly, staring at Nova. “But I’m not going to stand back while they just… take over. You think you’re safe as long as you keep a low profile but these guys are just getting started. You think they’ll leave you alone because you didn’t join the DA? To them, you’re as much as a traitor as Lux and Gabriel.”

Nova takes in his words before nodding. “I know that. Don’t you think I know that? But I’m scared. And I don’t think risking my life like you are is going to change that.”

Ezra shrugs in response. “Fine. There’s nothing I can do about that either so…”

“Can you at least tell me what happened with Valentina?” Nova practically begs him then.

Ezra stares at her, feeling torn between his loyalty to Lux and his helpless generosity. He looks both ways before sighing. “She wanted to see how we were doing and we spoke about Nyx and Gabriel.” He mentally pats himself in the back when he is done, proud to have kept it short enough to hopefully not anger Lux.

Nova, however, has more questions and she presses on. “Does she know… what happened?”

Ezra sighs again but nods. “Yeah. But she didn’t want to tell us.”

“It’s the Notts, isn’t it?” Her voice trembles when she asks and Ezra cannot not tell her, not when he knows how close Gabriel and Nova had gotten last year.

“Yeah.”

“Why does she work for them, then?”

As if on cue, the doors to the Great Hall open and Valentina, that Julien guy, and Alecto Carrow walk in. The entire room goes silent and watches them as they go by. Once they’ve passed in front of them, Ezra keeps looking at them but answers Nova. “I don’t know but I don’t think she’s doing it willingly.”

It’s an idea that has been in his head for a while now but he never thought of voicing it aloud. Knowing Lux and the rest of the DA, they would dismiss it immediately. His credibility has taken a hit since they caught him reading Dumbledore’s biography by Rita Skeeter. However, now that he has actually spoken to her, he can’t get that idea out of his head and he had to tell someone. So he told Lux. She, as expected, immediately dismissed it but that didn’t really change Ezra’s mind. He doesn’t think the pain and guilt he saw in Valentina’s eyes earlier could so easily be faked. Lux may think that he’s being dangerously hopeful but he doesn’t care. Someone has to be sometimes, right?

At the back of the room, Valentina takes place in front of the reading stand. She gently caresses the wood, remembering all the time she has watched Dumbledore give speeches here. Julian stands next to her but Alecto pushes him forward, leading him to one of the empty seats between hers and her brother’s.

“Whenever you’re ready,” she informs Valentina as they pass her by.

At the Gryffindor table, Lux glares at Valentina, her leg bouncing madly under the table. Around her, the other seventh years and Ginny are quiet, still musing on what Lux told them about her meeting with Valentina.

“Good evening,” Valentina eventually starts her speech, her voice loud and clear, probably magically enhanced. Her tone is flat, however, and Lux guesses she is still affected by their talk.

 _Good_.

“I stand before you today with a message of hope -”

As soon as Valentina begins, Neville leans forward, getting his friends’ attention. “Let’s go.” When neither of them replies, he says more pointedly, “ _Let’s go_ ,” this time prompting Seamus to react.

“What?” he asks with a confused grimace.

“We’re not going to stay here,” Nevill replies, “listening to bloody Valentina Weger give us a speech about _hope._ ”

“The Carrows will kill us,” Lavender retorts, throwing glances at Amycus and Alecto. Sure enough, they are staring at them, as if expecting them to pull something like that.

“You don’t have to follow me,” Neville replies and he starts straightening up, visibly ready to go, “but I won’t listen one more minute of this.”

“- Peace can only be achieved if we work all together -” Valentina goes on in the background.

Lux looks at Neville, then Valentina, then back at Neville. “Okay, let’s go,” she says with a nod, also straightening up.

“Let’s go,” Neville repeats, almost cheerfully, and he stands up, Lux close behind. Ginny quickly follows suit, then Seamus. Lavender and Parvati only think for a second before they also get up, walking behind their friends and out of the Great Hall. At the Hufflepuff table, Ezra watches them and starts laughing, shaking his head.

“Ezra,” Nova says pointedly, looking at him in fear. “Don’t.”

Ezra ignores her however and stands up, Ernie and Hannah doing the same after exchanging a look. People around the room start whispering, no longer paying attention to Valentina. She stops mid-sentence when she registers what is happening and looks at Julian who only shakes his head in confusion, a panicked look in his eyes. Next to him, neither Alecto nor Amycus makes a move, looking at the scene with small, pleased smiles on their faces.

“Don’t worry about it, Miss Weger. Please go on,” Amycus instructs her.

Valentina nods and resumes her speech, voice a bit shaky now.

At the Slytherin table, Sage looks at Lux, then Ezra leave the Great Hall and she shifts in her seat. Kai briefly glances sideways at her and puts a hand on her arm, as if to hold her back.

“Don’t even think about it,” he tells her, keeping his eyes on his cousin.

“What?” Sage asks taken aback. “I wasn’t-”

“Oh but you were,” Kai interrupts her. “Considering it, I mean. And I understand. But you want to be useful to Lux? Stay here.”

At the Ravenclaw table, only Padma and Terry stand up. McGonagall watches them, helpless before leaning over toward the Carrows. “I’ll go and handle this if you don’t mind-”

“Please don’t,” Alecto stops her, raising her hand. “We’ll take care of this ourselves tomorrow. You wouldn’t want to miss such an inspiring speech.”

The doors of the Great Hall close with a loud bang behind the last few rebels.

Outside of the Great Hall, the DA follows Neville, running after him until they reach a random empty classroom.

“Okay, that was cool,” Ernie is the first one to say when the last one of them, Terry, closes the door behind them, “but what do we do now? The Carrows are going to be here any minute.”

“Probably best if we don’t stay here,” Neville agrees.

“Okay, but what do we do?” Lavender asks then. “We can’t just go back to our Common Rooms… I’m hungry,” she adds with a pout, a bit embarrassed by that statement.

“Let’s go to the kitchen, then!” Ezra offers easily, looking giddy from a rush of adrenaline. “I doubt the Carrows will think of looking for us there.”

They all look at Neville for final approval and he nods in agreement. “Yeah, let’s do that. Come on.”

***

“Back so soon?”

Aberforth’s tone sounds almost mocking when he says it but Valentina ignores him, emotionally and physically drained. She collapses on a chair, Julian doing the same next to her, still polyjuiced. 

“How was it?” he asks a bit more compassionately when neither of them replies to his first question.

“Awful,” Julian and Valentina both reply at the same time, making Aberforth sigh. 

He grabs a bottle of Fire Whiskey and three glasses and comes to sit at their table. He opens the bottle and pours three very generous drinks before sliding one toward Valentina and one toward Julian.

“Should we toast?” Julian asks, staring at the content of his drink.

Valentina was already raising the glass to her lips but she lowers it, looking at him.

“What is there to celebrate, son?” Aberforth asks, looking unconvinced. 

Julian shrugs, his traits slowly transforming back. “I don’t know,” he replies honestly, a tad more firmly than necessary, “but I’m tired of feeling like... like this… Like we’re losing, like we aren’t doing anything, like this is all for nothing. Like they’ve already won. I want to celebrate something for once…”

Valentina looks at Julian in sadness but she doesn’t know what to say so she remains silent. Next to her, Aberforth is also looking at Julian but there is pity in his eyes. He wants to tell him that this is the reality and that he can’t do anything about it but he doesn’t have the heart to break the kid even more than he already is. 

“You haven’t been caught, yet,” he eventually points out, lacking a better answer. “That’s something to celebrate, right?”

“ _Yet_ being the keyword,” Julian retorts, turning his glass around, making the whiskey twirl inside.

Aberforth keeps his x-ray gaze on Julian as he starts to catch on. “So that’s why you came today, uh? To say goodbye?”

“Of course not,” Julian huffs, completely hermetic to that idea. “We came for our cover. Right, Val?” Valentina doesn’t seem so sure, however. Her eyes lose their focus as Julian presses on. “Val?”

“That’s what we said, yeah, but maybe we were lying to ourselves… Maybe we really came because we’ve lost hope,” she says, sounding distant, realization downing on her.

“How can you say that?”

“Face it, Julian. We’ve lost touch with the Order, there hasn’t been a _Potterwatch_ show in ages, we have no idea where Harry is or what he’s doing, Selene and Anya have disappeared, and we’re planning an attack against one of the most powerful families of Great Britain.”

“You are?” Aberforth lets out but they both ignore him.

“That doesn’t sound very hopeful to me… Maybe we started giving up without realizing?” Valentina concludes, sounding apologetic.

“No we haven’t,” Julian replies firmly. “ _I_ haven’t.”

“You did sound pretty hopeless just two minutes ago, son,” Aberforth retorts.

“Julian…” Valentina says pleadingly. “Once we go get Gabriel, we’re done for. We both know that. So when it does turn bad, I’ll be glad I got to see Ezra and Lux one last time. Don’t you?”

“When?” Julian repeats, looking and sounding shocked. “You… You never believed we could save Gabriel, did you?” he asks, once more disappointed by Valentina. “So what? You agreed because… because you’re planning to… to sacrifice yourself or something? Is that it?”

“No! Of course not!” Valentina protests. “I want to get Gabriel back as much as you do. But-”

“But if you die while trying it wouldn’t be so bad, right? That’s what you told yourself. That’s why you were so eager to help me, why you acted that way with Lux, risking our cover to apologize? You… You’re planning to kill yourself?”

“Julian…”

“No, please, tell me! What else do you have planned for the last ten days of your life? A bit of shopping? Travelling to Switzerland one last time, perhaps? Go see your Great-Great-Uncle in prison?”

“You should relax, kid,” Aberborth steps in, seeing Julian gripping his glass of Whiskey tighter and tighter. They still haven’t started drinking and Aberforth figures it’s rather a good thing. With the flick of his wand, he pours the three drinks back in the bottle and puts the bottle back where it was, vanishing the glasses as well before Julian grabs one and throws it at Valentina.

Seeing Aberforth’s actions, Julian abruptly stands up and starts pacing, looking furious at Valentina, yet again.

“I can’t believe it, I can’t believe it,” he keeps repeating under his breath, looking frantic.

Valentina has tears in her eyes again and helplessly looks at Aberforth for what to do next.

Aberforth has never liked her but it was never really personal. Deep down, he knows she isn’t like _him_ and he wants to help the kid, so he leans forward, putting his elbows on his knees and linking his fingers together, and he sighs once more.

“Kid. Julian,” he calls out. Julian, however, doesn’t look up and doesn’t stop moving, his breathing getting shakier and shakier. “Julian, look at me,” he orders more forcefully. Julian does stop this time and turns to look at Aberforth, tears in his eyes, red in the face, and chest heaving. “Breathe with me, alright?” Julian nods and tries to match his breathing with Aberforth who inhales and exhales in exaggeration so that Julian has a marker. “Good, that’s good,” he encourages him when Julian’s breathing goes back to normal.

“Julian,” Valentina starts again when Julian seems calm enough. “It’s not what you think. I want Gabriel back as much as you do and we’re going to try. So hard. But I also understand that there are risks. Lots and lots of risks. And I also prepared for that.”

Julian looks unsure but nods at Valentina.

“That Gabriel you’re talking about. It’s the Nott child, innit?” Valentina nods positively at Aberborth who raises both of his eyebrows in surprise. “He’s alive?”

“The Notts are holding him hostage at their estate. We don’t know what they’re planning to do with him but we doubt he’ll be alive for much longer,” Valentina explains.

“And you plan on attacking the Notts to save him?”

“Yeah,” Valentina replies with a self-deprecating laugh. “Insane, right?”

“I’d say reckless, even. Risking your life for one man, one who is more likely going to be dead soon anyway, if not already, isn’t very Albus-like of you. Not very ‘for the greater good’...” he adds, making air quotes.

“I’ve left a man behind before and I’d rather not have a repeat,” Valentina admits. “I have a second chance with Gabriel and I want to seize it. No matter how risky it is.”

“And I assume you won’t back down either?” Aberforth asks Julian, who slowly shakes his head no. “In that case, I guess this is goodbye.”

Valentina nods and stands up. Julian does as well and Aberforth goes to shakes his hand then Valentina’s.

“Take care of the kid,” he tells her, refusing to let go of her hand, holding it tightly. “You can risk your life all you want but he shouldn’t pay for your mistakes.”

“I know what I’m doing,” Julian intervenes.

“Oh yeah?” Aberborth replies looking down at him. “Well, I’m pretty sure you were just starting to have a panic attack earlier…”

“Julian is always my priority, don’t worry,” Valentina replies, tightening her hold on Aberforth’s hand.

“Can we ask you to take care of the kids?” Julian asks then, taking both Valentina and Aberforth by surprise.

“Excuse me?”

“The kids,” Julian replies, gesturing vaguely toward the direction of the castle. “The students. They’re surrounded by Death Eaters and dementors. So can you keep an eye on them?”

Aberforth smirks, the first hint of a smile since Julian met him. “Sure thing, son.”

“Thanks. Guess we’ll see you on the other side, then.”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is about Valentina and Julian but a few days later, then we're back with Lux and Kai!


	29. February 28, 1998 - 63 days before the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No notes for this chapter besides I'm shit at writing battles and it’s 10:30 on a Sunday night and I'm too knackered to proof read it one last time so I'll probably go back to it tomorrow but in the mean time here you go

Gabriel can hardly remember what happened after the explosion the night Nyx died. He vaguely remembers being rescued from the wreckage, remembers hearing well-known voices like Yaxley’s or Vincent’s, and remembers hearing Selene scream, but that is it. When he woke up, he was in his bed, back home, surrounded by two women, Yara and Naima, Reine’s two most trusted lieutenants, talking in low voices about his injuries. 

As far as Gabriel can remember, Yara and Naima have always been around. They have been working for Reine since practically the beginning, back when she was still working for the Council in Malabo, and they have never left her side since, going as far as following Reine to England when she married Vinicius Nott. Gabriel has always seen them as family, and even now, in a weird way, their presence reassured him.

Once he was conscious and focused enough, Naima sat down with him and explained what had happened. “We’ve been trying to track you for months now. When we finally managed to find you, last night, your father sent a team to get you back. The house you were in exploded and Nyx Astor was killed during the operation. You were already passed out when they brought you here. You had a shard of glass in your leg, several bruises and cuts from the explosion, and you were underfed. Your leg will have to stay elevated for a few days but we’ve done everything we could to make it heal quickly.”

Gabriel listened to everything but remained silent, still feeling exhausted and a little nauseous, as reality dawned on him. They had been caught. Nyx was dead. The Notts had him.

During the days that followed, Gabriel remained in his bedroom, trying to think of a way to escape and/or contact the Order. All of the plans he came up with, however, relied a lot on chance, which is never a good thing, and without his wand and with a weak leg, he quickly realized that running away without help wasn’t an option. His hope was definitely crushed when Yara informed him, more likely on his mother’s order, that he was magically stuck in his room.

Yara and Naima are apparently the only two people allowed to take care of him, probably per Reine’s request. The only other person Gabriel is allowed to see is Vincent, the Notts’ butler, and his father’s henchman. It didn’t take long for Gabriel to realize that while Yara’s and Naima’s job was to keep him alive and healthy, Vincent’s job was to punish him.

At first, Gabriel was sure that he would get interrogated. He was part of the Order after all and it wasn’t really a secret for anyone anymore. But after a few days of torture and no use of veritaserum, Gabriel realized that his father’s only goal was to make him pay for betraying him. From that moment on, Gabriel also guessed that the only reason he was still alive was Reine. As he told Julian, however, he didn’t think it would last much longer.

On the morning of his fifty-second day back home, Gabriel wakes up with the feeling that his time is up. There’s an odd vibe that doesn’t seem to go away and when Reine opens the door and steps inside his bedroom, Gabriel’s fears are confirmed. This is the first she has come to see him since he was caught and it can’t random.

She stands still for a bit, silent and cold, and Gabriel pointedly doesn’t look up from his sketchbook.

“Put this down, Gabriel,” she orders, coming to sit on the bed. Her legs aren’t crossed, just slightly bent to the side, her back straight, her head held high. Even on a mattress, Reine Keita looks like she is sitting on a throne.

Gabriel continues to ignore her, having mastered that skill through the years. He keeps sketching, quickening his movements as if to taunt her.

Reine, however, has never liked being provoked, especially not by her own son.

“Gabriel,” she says firmly, slamming her hand on Gabriel’s sketchbook, the lead of his pencil breaking from the shock, making a thick mark on his sketch of a cheetah. 

Annoyed, Gabriel finally looks up at his mother, his jaw clenched. “You told the world I was dead?” he says right away, deciding that there’s no point losing time on fake politeness.

Reine seems taken aback by the fact that he knows about this. Trying to stay unphased, she replies, “Who told you that?”

Gabriel shrugs. “I heard Yara and Naima talk about it,” he lies. They like him and have been probably more opened with him than allowed but even that they haven’t dared to let slip. “I see you’re not denying it.”

“I’m not,” Reine confirms, brushing invisible lint from her dress.

“Okay.” Gabriel draws out the word. “So what happens now? I’m not dead,” he says obviously, “but the world thinks I am. What happens if your side wins?” he asks, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’ve been thinking about it a lot, you know. There’s only one way out of this for both of us. You’d have to kill me. Martyrs aren’t useful alive, right? There’s a problem, though. We all know you’d never kill your own son... The only heir of the Keita family...” he adds with a hand flourish. “Unless of course… Uncle Alpha happened to have a baby…” he trails off, knowing the answer before Reine even has to say it. 

Reine studies her son’s face, gulping slightly before saying, “A beautiful baby girl.”

Gabriel snorts. “Of course,” he lets out, bowing his head. “And does Uncle Alpha know that you plan on using his daughter? Does he even know that I’m dead? Or that you’re pretending that I am? Does he know that they’re planning on killing me?”

Reine keeps on brushing her dress, avoiding her son’s eyes. “What he doesn’t know can’t hurt him.”

Gabriel nods, pursing his lips. “I thought family was everything? You’d betray your own brother?”

“Family  _ is _ everything, Gabriel,” Reine retorts angrily. “I really wish you truly understood that. Family is what keeps us alive. That’s precisely why I’m lying to him. To keep us united.”

Gabriel looks away. “You want to keep us united by choosing the Notts over us?”

“I’m not choosing anyone. The Notts are as much our family as the Keitas, in case you forgot.  _ You  _ are a Nott as much as a Keita, son.”

“Only by name,” Gabriel replies angrily. “My looks? My skin? My  _ blood _ ? It’s all Keita.”

Reine lets out a short, bitter laugh as she looks away. “You’re exactly like your uncle. You’re unable to see the bigger picture. Of course, we are Keitas before anything else, and yes, family is everything, but we have to expand the family to survive, forge alliances.”

“Of course but not with families like the  _ Notts _ ! There are other,  _ far better _ families out there.”

“Gabriel. Your uncle might be softer than I am but even he would never embarrass himself by associating with fakebloods like the  _ Astors _ .”

Gabriel doesn’t respond anything to that, only rolls his eyes, all too used to his mother bashing Lux any chance she has. He’s mad at himself for not realizing that her hatred lied deeper than just Lux. “You never planned on taking Nyx alive, did you?”

“As long as he was alive, we wouldn’t have been able to get rid of the Astors. Now that he’s gone, we can focus on the new world.”

“A new world ruled by You-Know-Who?”

“A new world ruled by  _ wizards _ . Your father has played an important role in this war. He’ll be properly rewarded for his service.”

“And you with him,” Gabriel comments bitterly. “And I’m supposed to be happy for you?”

“You can feel whatever way you want about it. It won’t matter,” she adds quietly afterwards, her eyes avoiding her son’s.

Gabriel stares at her, feeling a coldness along his spine. “No,” he agrees, his jaw clenched. “I guess not. But I’m assuming Uncle Alpha’s daughter will?”

“Alpha wants me to take part in her education so of course, she will matter. She deserves a proper upbringing,” Reine replies, her voice neutral. “Besides, I’m sure I’ll do better with her than I did with you. I’m actually going to Malabo to meet her. That’s why I wanted to talk to you.”

“You wanted to tell me you were going to Malabo?” Gabriel asks, raising an eyebrow. Then, realization dawns on him. “You’re leaving me alone with them. You wanted to say goodbye.”

“I tried to warn you, Gabriel,” Reine says, her voice breaking a little. “You should have listened to me.”

“It wouldn’t have mattered,” Gabriel replies, dejected. “I was a dead man the moment uncle Anastasius realized I was fighting with the Order last year.”

Reine lowers her head. “I suppose you’re right,” she admits. When she looks up, tears pool at her eyes.

She stands up, looks at the door, then looks back at Gabriel, sadness marking her face. Gabriel stares at her, looking confused. Defying all odds, Reine bends to place a kiss on Gabriel’s forehead.

“ _ Adios mijo _ ,” Reine whispers, sliding something under the covers of his bed.

“Wha-” Gabriel starts then stops when he realizes it is his wand. “Mother, I-”

“Use it wisely,” she cuts him off, squeezing his hand. “It’s your one chance.”

Reine leaves the room and Gabriel stays behind, startled, still magically linked to his bedroom but now in possession of his wand.

***

Julian is always scared that the  _ CRACK! _ of their Apparition is going to attract attention but when he and Valentina arrive in Merlin’s Vale, the street is dead silent and empty, as always. The ground is covered by a thick layer of snow and the wind blows freezing air in their faces. There aren’t any footprints here, the street being a small alleyway behind an old abandoned house. Julian doesn’t know how Sage, Ash, Lux, and Gabriel managed to grow up and live here all these years. To him, it’s the creepiest place on Earth. Once everything will be over, he would like to come back here, just to see if he feels different about the place.

“Ugh, I hate this,” he informs Valentina in his deep, polyjuiced, voice.

“I know, me too,” she replies, looking around them, gesturing at Julian to wait behind her.

Something tells him that she isn’t really talking about the weather nor the town but rather about the situation in general.

They weren’t supposed to be here tonight. Tonight, they were supposed to finalize their plan for tomorrow but Yaxley sent them an owl inviting them to an impromptu meeting tonight, something they couldn’t decline. In a way, it was a blessing. That way, they could let Gabriel know things were about to go down. Julian would just have to excuse himself for a minute to let him know to get ready because tomorrow they were coming to get him.

Still, Valentina wasn’t too reassured, feeling like something was up. She didn’t want to worry Julian until she knew for sure but she didn’t like the fact that Yaxley hadn’t specified why they wanted to see them. There was also the fact that Vinicius and Yaxley had been weird since their trip to Hogwarts. And to top it all off, she felt as if someone was observing them as soon as they Apparated.

“Val, what’s going on?” Julian asks when they still haven’t moved and Valentina immediately raises a finger to her mouth to shush him.

Without leaving Julian’s side, she turns around, then back, as if searching something. Concluding that it is only her mind playing tricks on her, she relaxes and makes a sign at Julian to start walking.

“Sorry. It just felt like there was somebody else over there.”

Julian turns around to look around but sure enough the street is as empty as always.

They move silently through the streets of Merlin’s Vale and up the hill on which the Nott estate stands. When they reach the door, Vincent is quick to greet them but it lacks its usual warmth. He welcomes them inside and takes their cloaks, grabbing Julian’s more forcefully than usual.

“Miss Weger, Mr Belfort. Mr Nott is waiting for you.”

Valentina nods politely at him when they pass him by and they make their way to the living room where Vinicius, Yaxley, Anastasius Nott, and a young man Julian can’t quite place but knows for sure he has seen him before sit in a couch area, glasses of Norrington Fire Whiskey in their hands. When they see them, they all immediately stand up.

“Miss Weger! I’m so glad you could join us tonight,” Vinicius greets them with a warm smile, so unusual that it is scary. “You too, Mister Belfort. Still with us, uh? If I remember correctly, you were meant to go back to France at some point, right? To help your family?”

“Oh,” Julian lets out, trying to hide his embarrassment. “Right, yes, but, er, Valentina convinced me to delay my return to finish what we started.”

Vinicius and Yaxley exchange a smile. “Of course,” Vinicius replies with a smile that looks more vicious than understanding. “Finish what you started,” he repeats, his eyes boring menacingly into Julian’s. “I understand.”

Despite himself, Julian gulps and looks at Valentina for help. Unfortunately, she looks as nervous as he is and that is when Julian begins to realize something is definitely wrong about the meeting.

“Care to join us?” Anastasius then speaks up, gesturing to the empty couch between them.

“Of course,” Valentina says, managing to crack one of her Ministry smile at the men.

Julian and her both take place on the couch and Julian feels cornered, the Notts brothers sitting on the couch on their right and Yaxley and the other man on the one on their left.

“We’re not here to talk business,” Vinicius states then, leaning forward, making a big show of putting his wand on the coffee table. He stares at Valentina and Julian, visibly waiting for them to do the same.

Julian looks at Valentina who stares at Vinicius. She grabs her own wand and slowly puts it on the table, Julian doing the same after a while. He notices in fear that no one else does it.

“Should we toast?” Anastasius says with the same poisonous smile as his little brother, raising his glass.

Julian frowns slightly at the sentence, then notices that there are two glasses already waiting for them on the coffee table. Completely full. Julian shakily takes his glass, awfully aware of his wand, right there, in the open. Next to him, Valentina doesn’t reach out for her own drink, her eyes fixed on it.

“What’s the occasion?” she asks numbly.

“Your success, Miss Weger, of course,” Anastasius easily replies. He looks incredibly calm but there’s something twisted about the way he looks at them that doesn’t sit well with Julian. “Hogwarts has never run so smoothly, the Carrows are slowly but surely crushing the little rebellion led by that Longbottom kid, and parents are applauding the new discipline system, all thanks to your support and engagement.”

“Oh, that reminds me!” Vinicius chimes in enthusiastically, “We never did tell you how the Carrows dealt with Longbottom, Weasley, and their friends, after your speech, right?”

Valentina slowly shakes her head no and coughs. “Er, no. No, you didn’t.”

“Oh well, I’ll spare you the details but just know that they paid for it. Cohen and Finnegan, those two half-bloods, spent a few days at the hospital wing afterwards, I heard.”

“What did you do to them?” Julian asks, unable to stop himself.

“Well,  _ we _ didn’t do anything but I heard that Alecto and Amycus got quite creative. See, as Cohen and Finnegan are half muggle, half magical, the punishments they received were… well… half muggle, half magical,” Anastasius explains with a smirk.

“Who knew wizards could learn something from muggles!” Yaxley barks out, laughing loudly, the others joining him. The sound makes Julian’s stomach turns and it takes all he has not to throw up on the mahogany table.

“Anyway,” Anastasius goes on when their laughter dies down. “My brother has told me a lot about you and your assistant, Miss Weger, and I have to admit, I’m impressed by the dedication you put into your work. The rest of the community can only aspire to show the same level of commitment and desire to purge our society of all its impurity. Right, Mr Belfort?”

Julian immediately nods, feeling ill-at-ease under Anastasius’s eyes. “Right, Mr Nott. Valentina and I have only one goal and that is for the wizarding community to prosper.” He says this mechanically, having learned this kind of reply by heart, trying really hard to conceal his pain and fear.

“I thought you would agree, Mr Belfort,” the unnamed man chimes in with a content smile and as soon as he speaks, Julian replaces him, his French accent bringing back memories from months prior. “Alexandre Marat,” he re-introduces himself, confirming Julian’s worry. “I don’t know if you remember, we spoke a few months ago, at the Ministry gala.”

“Right, right, of course,” Julian nods, trying to hide his discomfort. “ _ Alexandre. _ ”

“Alexandre works for the French magical embassy,” Yaxley informs them.

“I also assist the French representative at the European Magical Parliament,” Alexandre adds, “which means that I usually work between Paris, London, and Brussels.”

“Actually, Alexandre just got back from Paris,” Vinicius informs them. “How long has it been, Alexandre? A week? Ten days?”

“Ten days,” Alexandre confirms.

Julian feels Valentina tensing next to him.

“So,” Yaxley says, raising his glass once more. “Toast?”

“I’m not too thirsty,” Valentina says pointedly. She tries to not look at Julian but hopes that he gets the message. He started to raise his glass but lowers it immediately when he hears her tone, her polite cover slipping.

Neither of the men seems offended by that. They all look at them with small, satisfied smiles and suddenly, Julian has a flash of Amycus and Alecto Carrow watching the DA walk out of the Great Hall. He puts his glass down and stares at the table where his wand sits, trying to think of ways to discreetly grab it. Behind them, a door closes and they hear the sound of feet coming to a stop in front of it. 

“No?” Vinicius asks then nods in understanding. “I thought not…” he trails off as he stands up, going over to the chimney that faces Valentina and Julian. He turns his back on them and Julian can’t help but think that he looks like a James Bond villain like this.  _ Only missing the cat… _

“Who are you exactly, Mr Belfort?” Vinicius asks when he turns around.

Valentina doesn’t take her eyes off of Vinicius, jaw clenched. Next to her, Julian gulps and smiles nervously, trying to play it off.

“I’m not sure I understand what you mean, Mr Nott.”

“I know English isn’t your first language but it’s a simple enough question, Mr Belfort. Who are you?” Vinicius enunciates the last three words slowly, his dark eyes making Julian’s spine shiver.

“I’m- I’m me,” Julian stutters, playing dumb. They can still get out of this. They may have discovered that he isn’t who they said but they can’t have discovered that he is Julian. They can still get out of this. 

“That’s… funny,” Vinicius replies drily. “Of course you are you, Mr Belfort, but I’m not too sure that you are indeed… Mr Belfort.”

Julian briefly wonders if he should take advantage of this Carrollian situation.  _ Alice in Wonderland _ was his favourite story as a child, after all, and if anyone can drive someone crazy the way the Mad Hatter and the rest of the tea party did, it’s him. He doubts that Vinicius is a patient man, however, and he doesn’t want to find out if there is a beheading spell. Not like this. 

“I’m really not following you, Mr Nott,” Julian presses on. Next to him, Valentina might as well have turned into a statue.

“Let me spell it out for you then,” Vinicius says firmly. “We asked Alexandre to run a little background check on you after you suddenly reappeared, claiming you had family issues. He sent an owl back informing us that while the Belforts are a very extended wizarding family, the only two Julien Belfort he found were a boy born two years ago, in Lyon, and a man who passed away  _ ten _ years ago, in Strasbourg. Obviously, you are neither a toddler nor dead yet, Mr Belfort. Hence, my question. Who are you?”

“I…” Julian starts, then stops, at a loss for words.

Yaxley and Alexandre Marat quickly raise their wands then and point them at Julian and Valentina.

“Please stand up,” Vinicius order them.

Julian and Valentina do as told. The pair of feet from earlier walks closer to them and stops behind Julian.

“Are you familiar with Gringotts, Mr Belfort?” Anastasius asks. Before Julian can answer he goes on. “They have this fantastic device called the Thief’s Downfall, courtesy of my own great-grand-father. Do you know what this Downfall does?”

Julian shakes his head this time before the person that stands behind him dumps what seems to be a bucket of water on his head. Julian quickly realizes, however, how much worse it is, when he sees his hands regaining their light brown colour.

“Do you recognize him?” Vinicius asks his brother.

Anastasius shakes his head. Yaxley, next to him, smirks. “He’s one of the runaway mudbloods. He was with your son the night we killed Dumbledore.”

“Ah. I see,” Vinicius says with a nod. “Well, Vincent, if you please.”

The man behind Julian - Vincent, then - seizes Valentina just as Anastasius raises his wand and targets Julian.

Very much aware of having shifted back into himself, Julian realizes that this is it. This is how he dies, just about a few days shy of 18, in Gabriel’s living room, surrounded by blood supremacists, some random French guy who really should mind his own business and Valentina. He risks a glance at her but she seems petrified, her eyes fixed on Vinicius, so he turns his gaze back on Anastasius. Staring at him, Julian finds himself praying, probably for the first time in his life.

_ Alright, Allah, I never did believe that you exist but if you do, it’d be nice if you could prove me wrong right about now… unless of course, you can’t interfere with magical affairs… magic is most likely Haram, right? It has to b- _

There’s a loud bang and the doors to the living room blow open. The force of the explosion knocks down everyone in the living room. Julian however barely has time to register what is happening before he feels his arm being grabbed and pulled, his entire body being dragged behind the staircase.

“ _ Putain, putain, putain _ ,” Julian keeps repeating once the hand lets him go, his heart trying to beat out of his chest. He has no idea what is going on, just knows that just ten seconds ago he was about to get killed and that now he is crouching with Valentina behind some dusty stairs.

“ _ Julian _ !” Valentina whisper-shouts at him, grabbing his face to force him to look at her. “You need to breathe, alright? You’re okay. We’re not out of the woods yet but you’re  _ okay _ . Can you please focus?”

“What’s going on?” Julian asks as around them, spells start flying everywhere. There’s a ringing noise in his left ear and when he reaches to touch it, he finds it wet. At first, he thinks it has to be the de-polyjuicing liquid but when he brings his fingers in front of his eyes, they are drenched in blood. Next to him, Valentina is holding her wrist and her eyebrows are furrowed in pain.

“I have no idea but we need to get out of here right now before they catch us.”

“You know I’m not leaving without Gabriel, right?” Julian retorts coldly, trying to ignore the non-stop ringing noise.

Valentina looks at him, dubious, then sighs. “I know. You’re right. We get Gabriel and  _ then _ we get out of here.”

From behind the stairs, they hear spells being cast and bouncing off the walls and the furniture. Valentina risks a glance and spots Vinicius, Anastasius, Marat, and Yaxley fighting off…

“Kingsley!” she exclaims before diving back down behind the stairs. “Kingsley’s here!” she tells Julian.

“What? What is he doing here?”

“I don’t know. And he’s not alone,” Valentina adds before risking another glance.

With amazement, she spots Viktor Krum fighting Marat, Cho Chang fighting Vincent, Katie Bell and Alicia Spinnet fighting Vinicius, Oliver Wood and Angelina Johnson fighting Yaxley, and Kingsley fighting Anastasius.

“Julian,” Valentina says when she ducks again. “You need to go get Gabriel. Try to find his wand and free him from his room. Then you and him get out of here, alright? You Disapparate as soon as you have him, got it?”

“What are you going to do?” Julian asks, not too sure he wants to leave Valentina alone, wandless, and visibly injured.

“I’ll manage,” she tries to reassure him. “Now  _ go _ !”

Julian only hesitates for a second, remembering Valentina’s implied suicidal tendencies, but then does as told and runs upstairs. This time, he knows where he is going and heads straight to Gabriel’s bedroom. However, when he reaches it, he discovers in horror that it’s empty. One of the floorboards is missing but besides that, there is absolutely no sign that Gabriel, or anyone else for that matter, was ever here in the first place.

For a brief moment, Julian wonders if he perhaps dreamed Gabriel but quickly shakes his head. No. Gabriel was real. He saw him. He touched him.

Julian starts running again, opening every door he sees, not really knowing what he is looking for. If Gabriel’s bedroom is empty, then that means he is probably already dead and he doubts he will run into anyone. If there was anyone else in the house, they would have already run downstairs to see what was happening after the explosion. Some of the doors he tries are closed and refuse to open, even after Julian tries an  _ Alohomora  _ and even a  _ Bombarda Maxima.  _ He’s heading back toward the staircase when he bumps straight into someone.

“Gabriel!” Julian exclaims, amazed as he pulls back, staring at a surprised Gabriel, grabbing his arms and refusing to let go. “I thought you were dead! Again! How are you here?  _ Again! _ ” he asks then looks at his hand. “Why do you have your wand?” 

Gabriel looks down at his wand and bites his lower lip. “I er… It’s a long story. Where is yours?” he asks.

Julian frowns then remembers “Oh! I… don’t really know, actually. Your dad probably took it.”

Gabriel nods, a serious look on his face. “What happened? You’re bleeding and you’re… You’re wet? Why are you wet? Where’s Valentina?”

“Downstairs,” Julian explains. “Your dad discovered that we weren’t really working with them so he dropped a bucket of Gringotts water on me and poof! I was me again! He was about to kill us but then Kingsley stormed in with a bunch of random people. There’s a whole Quidditch team down there! Literally! Oliver and Angelina and Alicia and Katie and Cho and  _ Viktor Krum! _ Can you believe?”

“I-” Gabriel starts then stops. “How?”

“No idea! Kingsley was supposed to be looking for the Order... Well, I guess he found them!”

“Okay, okay,” Gabriel says twice. “We need to get out of here and find you a wand, come on.”

Julian follows Gabriel as he runs downstairs, struggling to keep up with him.

“Gabe, wait! Am I rescuing you or are you rescuing me?” he asks with a small, nervous laugh that makes Gabriel smile.

“Let’s say we’re rescuing each other, alright?”

They reach the living room and find it completely empty of people. The room is even more of a mess than when Julian ran upstairs. The couches have been completely blown up and feathers cover the floor, the huge chandelier has fallen from the ceiling and is broken into pieces on the floor, some of them on fire, and the portraits on the walls are torn and complaining loudly about the way they are treated. 

“Merlin,” Gabriel lets out, probably shocked by the state of his childhood home. 

Julian bends down to grab a random wand. It isn’t the one he used as Julien but it will have to do. “Come on, let’s go find the others.”

They run outside. In the yard, they find their rescue team and Valentina fighting off the Notts and Yaxley. There are two more people, fighting Alicia and Katie, two tall black women that Julian has never seen before. Gabriel, however, seems to know them, judging by the look of sorrow that crosses his eyes as he stares at them.

“Who are they?” Julian asks.

“They’re my mother’s lieutenants”

“Okay,” Julian nods, letting it go, before looking back at the fight. “Okay,” he says again, trying to think of what to do. Before he can come up with a plan, however, he hears someone exclaim, “ _ Nott? _ ”

Gabriel and Julian both look toward where it came from and see Oliver stare at them, looking pale. This moment of distraction is enough for Yaxley to send Oliver toppling down the hill. Everyone heard him, however, and they all collectively look toward Gabriel and Julian.

“Guys!  _ Run _ !” Valentina orders them but Gabriel and Julian ignore her. Instead, they jump in to help, Gabriel going to help Valentina, and Julian going to Angelina. He stuns Yaxley from behind and as soon as she sees him, Angelina yells, looking relieved. “Merlin! Julian, it’s  _ you _ !” 

“It’s me!” Julian yells back. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Oliver fell down, though,” she explains, pointing behind her.

“Go check on him, I’ll go get the others,” he tells her before running to help Cho.

A few feet away from them, Valentina is battling Vinicius who looks more angered than ever. “Weger!” he bellows, never stopping his movement. “How dare you betray your blood, your  _ legacy _ , like this?”

Valentina doesn’t reply, however, gritting her teeth, working hard to deflect Vinicius’s curses.

“Father!” Gabriel bellows, stepping in front of Valentina. 

Vinicius stops immediately his movements and stares at his son. A look of disgust flashes in his eyes but he quickly schools his face. “Son, what are you doing?”

“Saving my friends,” Gabriel replies easily. Behind him, Valentina doesn’t dare to move.

“They aren’t your friends, son. They’re  _ beneath  _ you. Roaches. That’s what they are. Halfbloods and mudbloods and  _ blood traitor! _ ” Vinicius spits the last one, looking at Valentina. “They’re just vermin! You are way better than them. Stay with us, son! Stay with us and help us continue to build the Nott Dynasty!”

Gabriel stares at his father but remains quiet. Vinicius waits patiently, probably expecting a change of heart from his son but it doesn’t come.

“No, thanks,” Gabriel eventually replies before cutting through the air with his wand and hitting his father square in the chest, his wand flying off.

“How dare you!” Vinicius yells as he falls on the snowed ground, looking at his son with more disgust than ever.

Valentina goes to get the wand and Gabriel moves forward, pointing his own at his father, breathing hard. “Sorry, Father, but I was never really your son.”

Vinicius yells as he stands up and throws himself at Gabriel, taking him by surprise. Valentina, however, is quick to react, stuns him before he can do much harm.

“You okay?” she asks as she helps Gabriel stand up.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Gabriel replies. “Let’s go.”

The two of them go down the hill where the others are waiting for them. People in the streets are running toward the estate, most likely alerted by the sparks of the spells.

“We can’t be here,” Valentina yells out. “The moment they see us, it’s over.”

“Okay, let’s go,” Julian agrees. “Delamere forest, okay?” he tells everyone before pivoting with Gabriel.

***

Valentina’s living room has never been so packed. Gabriel, Julian, Cho, and Katie sit on the couch, while Valentina relaxes on one of the chairs. Oliver and Angelina share the other one, and Alicia and Viktor sit at their feet on the carpeted floor. As for Kingsley, he leans against the mantle of the fireplace. They all hold various drinks, hot cocoa for Julian, Katie, Viktor, and Cho, and Fire Whiskey for the others.

“What happened?” Kingsley asks, looking anxious.

“We could ask you the same,” Julian retorts, still not understanding how they all came at the right time. “How did you guys know what was happening?”

“We didn’t,” Oliver admits. “Not really.”

“Then how were you here?” Valentina asks him with a frown.

“I work at Spintwiches, in Hogsmeade,” Angelina explains. “Last week, when I was closing, the Hogs Head Inn bartender came to talk to me. He had one of the Order cards so I followed him back to his Inn. He told me that you were planning on attacking the Notts and asked me to put together a back-up team.”

“Aberforth asked you to help us?” Julian asks with a pleasing smile.

Angelina nods but Gabriel frowns. “If he had one of the Order cards, why couldn't he just contact the Order?”

“They’re not working anymore,” Alicia replies. “The twins did a great job but the spells wore off after a few months. Angelina and I, we live together so she told me about her encounter and we started contacting the members we knew we could reach without any risks,” she adds, gesturing at Cho, Katie, and Oliver.

“We started patrolling by pair,” Angelina goes on, “to see if anything was happening. But then, Katie heard something at the Ministry.”

“I was going to a trial when I saw Yaxley, your father, and that other guy talk,” Katie explains. “I listened to what they were saying when I heard your name, Valentina. They were saying that they needed to get Julian, or well  _ Julien  _ before you discovered… something. I assume it was you, Gabriel,” she adds with a small smile. “Yaxley said he would call up a meeting for tonight so I immediately left to warn Cho and Angelina. We went to Merlin’s Vale where Alicia and Oliver were patrolling and we waited, we stood guard.”

“Wait, you were the ones I thought were watching us?” Valentina wonders, looking relieved.

“No, that was me,” Kingsley replies with an apologetic smile. “I saw your face when you got the owl. I saw that you were worried and I thought that if you had a bad feeling about that meeting, after everything you had seen and heard, it must have been worrying. So I followed you, in case you needed back up. I saw Katie when I reached the estate and I remembered her from last year. I joined them but one of Nott’s employees saw us so we stunned her. We didn’t want to risk it so we just decided to…”

“Storm in?” Julian finishes, a small amused smile playing at his lips.

“Yeah,” Kingsley huffs out.

“What about you, Viktor, then?” Gabriel asks.

“After I was interrogated at Fleur’s wedding, I went back home. There was a lot of chatter about Grindelwald having an heir who was gathering troops in England. So I came back here to catch them.”

“Grindelwald?” Everyone says at the same time, aside from Valentina, Kingsley, and Julian who just look at each other.

“Yeah,” Viktor nods. “I quickly found out that it was an  _ heiress _ , actually,” he adds, looking at Valentina.

Kingsley and Julian both stare at her, waiting to see what she’ll do.

“It’s not an heiress, per se,” she speaks up, rolling her eyes a little. “But rather a niece. A great-grand-niece. But don’t worry, I’m not gathering any troops.”

Oliver, Angelina, Katie, Alicia, and Cho all stare at her, registering what has just been implied, then they all start talking at the same time, asking a hundred questions. Gabriel, however, remains quiet and stares at Valentina, mouth slightly agape. 

“Guys, come on,” Julian interrupts them. “Let her breathe, alright?”

“Sorry,” Angelina apologizes. “It’s just…”

“We had no idea,” Oliver finishes.

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to, Valentina,” Cho chimes in.

“Thank you,” Valentina says, then turns to Viktor. “Please, go on.”

Viktor nods. “It was hard getting info on you and where you lived but I heard that you were often seen at the Notts’ so I started patrolling there too. Tonight, I saw Oliver whom I remember from Hogwarts so I followed him. When Kingsley arrived, I heard what he told the others so I came to help.” Viktor pauses then turns to Gabriel. “I thought you were dead.”

“We all did,” Alicia adds with a grimace.

“It’s a long story,” Gabriel says, looking uncomfortable, never a fan of being the center of the attention.

“Well, we do have all night,” Angelina replies cheekily.

Gabriel sighs but smiles a little. Julian guesses it must be because he realizes that they made it and that he is safe now.

They all settle comfortably and Valentina and Kingsley, who already know the story, excuse themselves. He starts with the beginning, the very beginning when he discovered that his uncle and most likely the rest of his family were still working for He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. He then moves on to how he moved in with the Caulfields, how they were ambushed at the wedding and had to flee with Nyx, how they began moving from one place to another - he tells Cho about Marietta but she doesn’t seem too surprised. He goes on with how they ended up at Bill’s and Fleur’s, and how they met up with Valentina, Julian, and Kingsley but were once again ambushed.

“That’s when they captured me and… killed Nyx.”

Silence settles then. Julian guesses that they all hoped Gabriel hadn’t been the only miracle. Seeing his sadness, he decides to step in. “We got separated from Anya and Selene and have no idea where they went. Kingsley had a feeling that Gabriel might still be alive so we kept working with the Notts, hoping to find something.”

Julian goes on to explain what had happened to him. He starts with how Valentina came to get him and how he started spying on the Ministry and the Notts for Kingsley. He then explains how he found Gabriel after his supposed death, the plan they thought of to save him, and how eventually, everything went to shit tonight.

Once they are done, it doesn’t take too long for Oliver, Viktor, Katie, Angelina, Alicia, and Cho to head upstairs and get some sleep. Julian and Gabriel, however, remain downstairs, neither too pressed to go to bed. 

“I can’t believe you’re here,” Julian says after a sigh, resting his head on his hand.

“Trust me, me neither,” Gabriel replies with a short laugh.

He looks tired, Julian notices. His face is marked by stress, pain, and grief and he has faint scars on his eyebrow, his cheek, and his neck. Julian can only imagine how they got there.

“I know you probably won’t want to talk about it but if you want to talk about it…” Julian trails off with a knowing look.

“I’m fine,” Gabriel lies. “I’m safe now.”

“Yeah…”

Julian wants to ask about his wand and the two women but he knows that pushing Gabriel is never a good tactic so, for now, he lets it go.

They let the silence wash over them once more, content to just let themselves drift off to sleep, rocked by the crack of the chimney fire. Julian is practically asleep when he suddenly startles awake, remembering something.

“Wait! We were at Hogwarts!”

“What?” Gabriel asks, also startling awake, his eyebrows drew together in confusion.

“Valentina and I. We went to Hogwarts! We… We saw… everyone. Lux, Nova, Ezra, Kai!”

Gabriel doesn’t really know what to say. “That’s… twice,” he says clumsily, looking uncomfortable.

Julian seems taken aback by that response. “Y- Yeah. That’s twice, yeah,” he agrees with a nod. “Lux is still as pissed,” he tells Gabriel, hoping it’ll prompt some reaction. “Ezra as well, which is weirder. I didn’t get to talk to Nova or the others but Valentina and I spoke to Lux, Ezra, and Kai.” When Gabriel still doesn’t say anything, Julian goes on. “They’re doing okay, Gabe. They do think that you’re dead,” he admits with a grimace, “but-”

Gabriel suddenly bursts out laughing, catching Julian off guard. He stares at him in confusion as Gabriel’s laughs don’t seem to calm down.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Gabriel says, holding his ribs and shaking his head. “I don’t mean- It’s nervous, it’s just nervous,” he explains. He takes two deep breaths to calm himself and presses his eyes with the palm of his hands. “I just… People think I’m dead! Lux and Kai. They think I’m  _ dead _ ! Because I could be. I  _ should _ be. But I’m not. And I’m here.” He looks at Julian who gives him a sad smile.

“You are. And we’ll make sure Kai and Lux know it as soon as possible.” They both know they have no safe way to do that but it is a nice enough idea to make Gabriel smile gratefully.

“Thanks.”

  
  



	30. March 1, 1998 - 62 days before the Battle.

This morning, as soon as she walks into the Great Hall, Lux is hit with the worst feeling of déjà-vu. People are loudly talking to each other, calling their friends to look at the  _ Daily Prophet _ , and shaking the journal around, letting her know there’s a new hot gossip. It awfully feels like the morning they learned that Nyx and Gabriel had been killed and Lux really isn’t sure she can handle another death. That is why she frowns in confusion when she sees Neville waving her over with… enthusiasm? With him are sat Ginny and Seamus, talking over the journal and Ezra, looking at them with a frown.

“What’s going on?” Lux asks when she reaches them.

Ginny and Seamus immediately stop talking. They look at her and, without a word, hand her the journal.

The front cover shows a picture of Valentina and that Julien guy, taken here at Hogwarts. The title above says:

**VALENTINA WEGER WANTED FOR BETRAYAL**

Lux almost loses hold of the journal as soon as she reads the words. She looks at her friends, a dumbstruck expression on her face. “No way…”

“Yes way!” Neville replies gleefully. “And that’s not the best part. Look at the article.”

Lux quickly goes through the journal to find the double-page report of Valentina’s betrayal.

> “ _ Weger attacked the Nott Estate late last night in the company of other rebels identified as Kingsley Shacklebolt (already wanted for betrayal), Oliver Wood (Reserve Keeper for the Puddlemere United), Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, Katie Bell (intern at the Ministry), Cho Chang, and star Quidditch player Viktor Krum. It was also revealed that the man who posed as Weger’s assistant, a French wizard named Julien Belfort was actually the muggle-born fugitive Julian Rose, under polyjuice. Reasons why the group decided to attack the Notts are still unknown but it comes only a month after the tragic murder of Reine Keita’s and Vinicius Nott’s son, Gabriel, by the hands of muggle-born fugitives Selene and Anya Caulfield. The Auror in charge of the investigation, Harraps Grimm, is sure that these two events are related and were orchestrated by the same terrorist group known as the Order of the Phoenix, to overthrow the government. The Nott brothers seem to be the Order’s main target, both because of their very high positions at the Ministry (ed. Anastasius is Head of the Department of Mystery and Vinicius is Secretary in Charge of Education) and their close ties the Minister. After the attack-  _ ”

Lux doesn’t read more after that. She puts the journal down, speechless, and looks at an equally shaken Ezra.

“Julian?” she only says, to which he simply nods, eyes wide open.

“Isn’t that amazing?” Seamus says cheerfully, unaware of Lux’s and Ezra’s turmoil.

The two look at each other, hoping one of them will find something to say but they both are at a loss for words, completely overwhelmed by the news that they saw Julian without knowing, and, in Lux’s case,  _ twice _ .

“Guys, isn’t that amazing?” Seamus repeats, starting to frown. Next to him, Ginny has dived back into the article, probably to look for clues. Neville stares at Ezra and Lux in confusion.

“Oh, yeah, that’s great,” Ezra eventually replies with a fake smile. “It’s, er… It’s great. I, er… Lux, you want to get out of here?”

She nods and the two of them quickly exits the Great Hall, Ezra grabbing the journal on his way.

“What’s up with them?” Neville asks Seamus as they watch them leave.

Seamus only shrugs and shakes his head, mouth full of scrambled eggs. “Dunno.”

Without a word, Ezra and Lux start going upstairs, two steps at a time, in search of some quiet place to talk. They run past Ernie and Padma but completely ignore them when they ask what is wrong.

They have barely reached the fifth floor when they bump straight into Theodore Nott.

At first, he doesn’t say anything, just stares at Lux and she notices that he doesn’t look as snobby and broody as usual. He looks mostly tired, almost sick, has for the past month, and when they catch each other’s eyes, his look sad. It is a weird look on him and it makes Lux stop immediately in her tracks to stare at him.

“Lux?” Ezra, who hadn’t really stopped, just pushed past Theo, stops in his tracks and turns back around to look at her in confusion.

Ezra’s voice seems to bring Theo back to reality because he clears his throat and schools his face before turning toward him. “The Carrows want to see you.”

“Us?” Ezra asks, already figuring out what this is about.

“No.  _ You _ ,” Theo replies with emphasis, only looking at Ezra.

“No,” Lux replies immediately, stepping in front of Ezra. She doesn’t know what the Carrows want now but she has had enough. Nothing was worse than hearing him scream after receiving the Cruciatus Curse, but seeing him lying unconscious at the hospital wing, covered in bruises and cuts was definitely close second. 

“Astor,” Theo sighs but there is no venom behind his words. “You know you can’t stop them.”

“Of course I can,” Lux replies stubbornly. “Just watch me.”

“Lux.” This time, it’s Ezra who speaks up from behind her. He gently puts a hand on her shoulder and silently asks her to step aside. Lux, however, doesn’t move. “Come on, you know they’ll do much worse if I don’t obey.”

“What’s worse than what they’ve already done?” Lux naively asks. Theo and Ezra both give her a look. 

Lux’s eyes widen in realization but she doesn’t say anything.

“Do you know what they want?” Ezra asks Theo, who shrugs.

“They asked to see Kai too, so I assume it has something to do with Valentina Weger. You two spoke to her in private that day, right?”

“Yeah,” Ezra replies, looking somewhat defeated. 

Lux turns toward him. “Let me come with you at least,” she asks despite knowing that she can’t. “They’ll probably ask to see me too anyway.”

“Maybe,” Theo agrees, “but right now they only asked for Cohen.”

“It’s better if I go alone and you know it,” Ezra replies sadly, cupping her cheek.

Lux looks down. She puts her own hand over Ezra’s and it trembles. 

“I’ll be okay,” Ezra tries to reassure her but he knows neither of them believes it.

Lux grabs the collar of his shirt. “Use your wand,” she tells him, despite knowing full well that Ezra won’t. “You’re a wizard, Ez. If need be,  _ use it _ .”

Ezra doesn’t reply anything to that, just kisses her forehead then follows Theo to Amycus Carrow’s office. 

Lux remains there for a bit, feeling cold and sick until she eventually decides she needs to tell the DA. She is making her way back toward the Great Hall when Nova suddenly materializes in front of her.

“Merlin’s beard!” Lux startles loudly, a hand over her heart. “Nova, give a girl a warning, next time, alright?”

“I would have if I was sure you wouldn’t run and hide,” Nova replies dryly, a hand on her hips.

Lux squints, seeming to think about it, before nodding in agreement. “Yeah, I probably would have. Now, if you’ll excuse me...” she trails off, starting to walk away.

“See!” Nova exclaims in annoyance, throwing her arms and jogging to stop Lux. “Unbelievable.”

“I mean you know I don’t want to talk to you so…”

“Lux, please,” Nova says firmly and the look in her eyes makes Lux stop immediately. She hasn’t seen Nova this close in a while and the first thing that hits her is how shaken she looks. Her usual tan skin has turned into a sickly pale and she has huge dark circles around her eyes - although, as judged by Theodore Nott just a few minutes ago, it seems that the same phenomenon is happening to everyone at this school. Her red cheeks and bloodshot irises clearly show that she’s been crying and her usually perfectly coiffed hair is clumsily tied into an all-over-the-place bun.

“That article in the  _ Prophet _ … Is it true?”

Lux frowns in confusion, her mind solely on Ezra and the Carrows, but then she remembers why Ezra and her where alone in the first place.  _ Julian _ .

A part of Lux suddenly feels for Nova. She knows what it has been like missing Nyx and Gabriel so she can easily imagine what Nova has been going through this year, and this morning’s  _ Prophet _ can’t have been too reassuring. There’s another part of her, however, one she would never admit having, which feels almost satisfied to see Nova in such a state; the part of her which was tied up in the dungeons, lost Nyx and Gabriel, saw Ezra get tortured right in front of her lying unconscious and beaten up, and just now taken once more to the Carrows, and which more recently was used in Dark Arts for students to test their Cruciatus Curse after leaving the Great Hall during Valentina’s speech.

Still, despite her pettiness and bitterness, Lux understands that today isn’t a good day for Nova so she takes a deep breath and decides to listen to the compassionate part of her.

“I don’t know,” Lux replies honestly. “Ezra believes so and I guess I do too. I don’t really see why their side would pretend that Valentina suddenly betrayed them if it wasn’t the case.”

“What about Julian?” Nova asks, teary-eyed.

Lux sighs and shakes her head. “I honestly don’t know. Again, I kind of want to believe them. I don’t see why they would come up with something like that if it wasn’t  _ at least _ partly true.”

“You spoke to them,” Nova says. It’s not a question.

“I did,” Lux confirms with a nod.

“Did they… Did he… Did you…” Nova stutters, visibly struggling with a hundred questions at once and unable to settle on just one to start.

“Did I know they were on our side? Did I know it was Julian?” Lux finishes for her. “No. No, I didn’t. If I did…” she starts then trails off, not really wanting to talk about this with Nova. This is more of an Ezra kind of talk. Or Kai, perhaps. But definitely not Nova. “They didn’t want us to know it was them,” she tells Nova, guessing this would reassure her.

It doesn’t, however. “Are you sure? Perhaps they said something… Maybe Julian tried to-”

“He didn’t try anything, Nova,” Lux says, harsher than necessary. “Julian stood there and didn’t try once to let us know it was him. He stood there and he talked about Nyx’s and Gabriel’s deaths like they were merely a detail. He stood there and he looked at us, at me and at Ezra, and he said nothing. He listened to Ezra talk about the Carrows torturing him and he said nothing, he did  _ nothing _ . He let Valentina talk about the Carrows and their disciplinary system and he didn’t do anything!” Lux’s voice breaks as her breathing accelerates, her eyes watering at the thought. “So no, I didn’t know it was Julian. But you know what? I’m glad I didn’t know this man was my friend because even if he hadn’t been polyjuiced, I don’t think I would have recognized him anyway.”

And it is as she lets it all out that Lux realizes why the news from this morning’s  _ Prophet _ shook her so much. It wasn’t necessarily the fact that Valentina had been on their side all along but rather that they had been alone twice now and not once did they trust her enough to reveal their identities. Not once did Julian try to hint at her and Ezra his true identity or to let them know he was alright, after eight months of silence.

Nova remains silent as Lux lashes on to her, crying silently. Then, as if she hadn’t heard what Lux had just said, she asks, “But why didn’t he asks to see me?”

Lux stares at her. “Seriously? Nova, don’t you get it? Julian doesn’t care. He’s too busy playing spies with Valentina to give a shit about us.”

“But he still asked to see you-”

“ _ Valentina _ asked to see us,” Lux cuts Nova off again. “Because Valentina wanted to show the Carrows she was on their side. So she pretended to sermon Ezra and me about the DA. That’s it. That’s all it was.”

“I…” Nova starts then stops, at a loss for words.

“I’m sorry Nova,” Lux tells her and she surprises herself by actually meaning it. “I wish it was different but it’s not. The war, the fight, the battle last year and the one coming… They all changed us. Julian and you included. The faster you understand that, the better you’ll be.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Nova asks, half offended, half scared.

“It means you have to start making your own choices. Stop living your life according to Julian or Adelia or me or anyone else. Live for  _ yourself  _ for once! And stop feeling sorry for it. You don’t want to fight? Fine, but own up to it. Stop running after Ezra like a lost puppy.”

“I’m not-” Nova tries to reply but Lux doesn’t let her finish.

“Yes, you are. And it’s annoying. You think what we’re doing is stupid and dangerous? Fine, but then leave us alone,” Lux concludes before walking away, leaving people to stare between her and Nova in confusion.

***

Lux doesn’t hear from Ezra all morning.

After talking with Neville and Seamus, she tries to casually pass by the Carrows’ offices, but she bumps into Crabb and Goyle, guarding both hallways. 

Upset and nervous, she heads back to the seventh floor. When she arrives in front of the Fat Lady, however, she has the surprise to find Kai arguing with the portrait.

“I’m not trying to  _ enter _ the Common Room! I just want to know if  _ Lux Astor _ is in there!”

“And I’m telling you, young man, that you have no business being here.”

“What’s going on?” Lux asks, stepping forward and glancing between the Fat Lady and Kai who has turned bright red.

“Miss Astor, not for the first time, I would like to remind you that my role is to guard the Gryffindor Common Room, not play secretaries for you and your friends.”

“Yes, ma’am, of course,” Lux replies bashfully, having always been slightly intimidated by the portrait. 

She looks at Kai, who looks as if he has been caught with his hand in the cookie jar, and grabs his arm, dragging him away from the Fat Lady who has turned toward her friend Violet.

“ _ Can you believe? _ ”

“What are you doing?” Kai asks, slightly startled as Lux throws him inside a dark supply closet and closes the door behind them.

With a flick of the wrist, she lights up the tip of her wand. “What are you doing here?”

“In the supply closet?” Kai asks flatly, one eyebrow raised, his back pressed again the shelves.

“In the Gryffindor Tower,” Lux corrects him, trying to convey the fact that she does not have time for him. For once.

“I… had something I needed to ask,” Kai replies hesitantly. Lux notices that, for what might be the first time since they began talking, Kai seems nervous.

“And you didn’t think that, with the Carrows wondering what happened between us and Valentina, it wasn’t a good idea to be seen together?”

“It’s never a good thing for us to be seen together but you never seemed to be bothered,” Kai points out with a pout. Lux can’t help but note that vulnerability makes him look younger.

“Yeah well that was before they started to torture us,” she replies, trying to sound casual but failing.

Kai sees it and frowns. “What’s wrong?”

Lux looks at him for a bit, as if wondering if she should say something, then lowers her eyes. “Theo came to get Ezra this morning because the Carrows wanted to speak to him and he still hasn’t come back.”

“I’m sure he’ll be fine,” Kai tells her, trying to reassure her. “You didn’t know what she was up to, right?” When Lux nods, he goes on. “Then the Carrows have no reason to punish him.”

“Since when do the Carrows care about the truth? If they want to hurt him, they’ll hurt him.”

“They could have hurt me and they didn’t,” Kai replies without thinking.

Lux looks at him in confusion. “What?”

“The Carrows,” he explains. “They asked to see me before Ezra. They seemed suspicious because you and I have been seen together several times and you were with me this summer and again at Christmas when we saw Valentina. They asked me to come and they gave me a cup of tea.”

“Please tell me you didn’t drink it,” Lux breathes out.

“I didn’t want to. But they were staring at me. Amycus poured two drinks; one for me, one for himself. He didn’t drink from his cup but expected me to do it, I guess. So I did. I think it was a test because he seemed pretty satisfied when I drank and then he drank from his own cup right after, maybe to let me know that he hadn’t put anything in there and that he just wanted to see if I had anything to hide. After that, they asked me a few questions about Valentina and you and then they let me go. So see? They could have hurt me, but they didn’t.”

“Yeah but you’re Kai Alpert,” Lux replies bitterly. “The prodigy, son of two well-respected wizards, and a pureblood. Of course, they weren’t going to hurt you.”

Kai doesn’t really know what to reply to that. He knows she is right and there isn’t much more he can do. Lux seems to think the same because she decides to change the subject.

“You said there was something you wanted to ask me?”

Kai blushes again and for a very brief second, Lux begins to wonder if he is about to ask her out. What Kai blurts out, however, quickly and barely audible, is very different.

“Amiyourbackupgabriel?”

“What?”

“Am I your backup Gabriel?” Kai asks more slowly, averting his eyes from Lux’s.

Lux pauses. “What?” she lets out again, this time with a startled laugh, having not expected that.

“I just… I spoke to Sage the other day and she said that you were using me as your backup Gabriel. At first, I thought it was rubbish but I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since so… Am I?”

“I don’t know,” Lux replies with a shrug. “ _ Am I? _ ”

This time, it is Kai who seems taken aback. “What?”

“If I’m using you, you’re using me, mate,” Lux replies with a small, amused smile.

Kai, however, looks positively offended and tries to deny it but he doesn’t manage to form proper sentences, just vaguely stutters half-formed words. 

Lux looks at him in amusement before putting him out of his misery. “Relax, Alpert. I don’t mind being your backup Gabriel. If anything, I’m flattered.”

“But what does that even mean? ‘Backup Gabriel’?”

“I don’t know!” Lux retorts, chuckling. “You’re the one who said that!”

“I know! But it’s Sage who said that!”

“No need to yell,” Lux chastises him but the glee in her eyes remains. “Kai, look at me,” she tells him, almost tenderly, when he looks down between them. “I actually think that it’s quite nice that despite everything that happened, we have each other. Obviously, neither of us can replace Gabriel. We both know that. But if anyone can understand what it was like for us to lose him… it’s us. And I personally am glad that I have you to remember him.”

Kai looks at Lux and feels water pooling at his eyes. He tries really hard to hold the tear back as he clears his throat and looks away, suddenly feeling smothered by the lack of space between him and Lux in the supply closet. His heart rate quickens and he starts struggling to breathe, Lux’s dark blue eyes even more intense under her wand’s light. 

“What if I don’t want to remember him?” he asks without thinking, trying to ignore the itchiness of his sternum. Low blows have always been his speciality and he knows that they have so far always proved effective when he needs to push Lux away.

Once again, it doesn’t miss. It never does.

And Lux physically takes a step back, stumbling on a broom and almost crashing into the shelves behind her. 

“You don’t mean that,” she says, confused by the sudden turn of events. Lux has grown to care a whole lot about Kai this year but every time she feels like she understands him and they are making progress, Kai finds a new creative way to tell her to fuck off. 

“I’m sorry, Astor, but I’m not like you. I can’t always be angry at the world. I need to move on.”

“You need to move on?” Lux repeats with an accusatory tone. “And how so? With Pansy? Really?”

“Oh don’t start,” Kai sighs out, eager to run as far away from this closet as possible. “See? That’s your problem. You judge people without knowing them.”

“Oh, I know Pansy alright,” Lux retorts, now full-on annoyed. “I’ve been her classmate for seven years, remember? And that girl is a nightmare. She’s cruel and shallow and miles away from Gabriel-”

“Yeah, well, at least she’s alive!” Kai snaps, effectively shutting Lux up.

She stares at him in horror, mouth agape, tears rolling down her cheek and hands shaking.

“Go fuck yourself, Alpert,” she practically spits at him before exiting the closet. 

She is walking back toward the Fat Lady when she hears her yell at someone again.

“Oh, what’s wrong with you Slytherins, today? How many times do I have to tell you?  _ You. Have. No. Business. Being here! _ ”

“What are you doing here?” Lux asks as she stares at Theodore Nott. She doesn’t even try to hide the fact that she is crying. She and her reputation are way past that now.

“The Carrows asked-” Theo starts then stops when he spots something behind Lux. She doesn’t need to ask or turn to know that he probably saw Kai exit the closet and walk down the stairs. “What is Kai doing here?”

“None of your business,” Lux replies harshly. “What do the Carrows want now?”

Theo seems to hesitate before letting it go. He sighs and gestures toward the stairs. “They want to see you.”

“Where’s Ezra?”

“I don’t-” Theo starts replying but he is cut off by a voice coming from the other side of the corridor.

“I’m here,” Ezra calls out, jogging toward them.

Lux immediately jumps on him, hugging him close.

“You’re okay?” she breathes out, holding his face to inspect him closely. He looks tired and slightly feverish but there’s no sign of new bruises or cuts so Lux counts that as a win. Maybe Kai was right.

“Yeah, don’t worry,” Ezra replies with a reassuring smile. “I should be the one asking,” he adds, wiping a stray tear from her cheek. “What’s going on?” he asks, briefly glancing at Theo as if he was responsible for making Lux cry.

“It’s nothing,” Lux dismisses it. “I just spoke to Kai,” she adds under her breath, hoping Theo can’t hear them. “It didn’t go well. But tell me,” she goes on, “what did the Carrows want?”

“They asked me about Valentina and Julian. I didn’t really know what to tell them. I told them I hadn’t spoken to Julian since last summer and that I had no idea it was him and I told them that I was sure Valentina was on their side.”

“That’s it? They didn’t threaten you or hurt you?” Lux asks, relieved but also confused.

“No,” Ezra replies but his smile is twisted, tense. “They just asked me questions.”

“But you were gone for so long, I thought-”

“Oh yeah, sorry”, Ezra cuts her off, scratching the back of his head. “I was tired after so I went straight back to my Common Room and slept for a bit. 

“Come on, Astor, Cohen,” Theo says, starting to lose patience. “I don’t have all day.”

“Right,” Lux nods before turning back to Ezra. “We’ll talk later, alright?”

“Yeah, yeah, don’t worry.”

Lux gives him one last doubtful look before following Theo. They have almost reached the stairs when Ezra calls her back.

“You’ll be careful, right?”

“I’ll be fine,” she replies, her confusion only growing. “It’s just a few questions, right?”

“Yeah, right,” Ezra replies, trying to smile.

***

Theo leaves as soon as Amycus opens the door to his office as if he was scared to spend more time than necessary in their presence. Lux noticed early on that the Carrows often asked Theo for stuff and she wondered if it was because Theo was more willing than the rest of the students or because they wanted to keep an eye on him to put pressure on the Notts.

Unlike most other pureblood supremacist families, the Notts aren’t followers. Everyone knows that. The rich and old house of Nott seeks power before anything else. That is the reason why they sided with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named in the first place, then started working at the Ministry, and then rejoined him when he came back. They always try to be on the winning side, no matter what side that is. This also explains why the brothers married Neela Shafiq and Reine Keita, two heiresses of two very powerful, non-British, pureblood families. Lux imagines that this state-of-mind can’t really please people who joined He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named for their admiration of him first and foremost, like the Carrows, or other power-hungry but less fortunate families, like the Malfoys. Given that Theo seems off this year, Lux wonders if he knows that the Carrows are most likely using him as leverage.

“Miss Astor, a pleasure, as always,” Amycus greets her as she enters the office.

He closes the door behind her and shows her the empty seat in front of the desk. Alecto is sitting on the other side of it, reading the  _ Daily Prophet.  _ She lowers it when Lux sits down.

“I assume you know why we asked you here,” she says, matter-of-factly, as Amycus puts two empty cups on the desk.  _ Ah. The famous test. _

“Would you like some tea?” he asks her.

Lux knows she can’t just say yes immediately. The Carrows may not know she spoke to Kai, but if she replies too early, they will get suspicious. They expect her to say no.

“I’m not really thirsty, but thanks for offering,” she replies politely. The chair is incredibly uncomfortable and Lux wonders if they charmed it to be. She shifts, trying to find a good position and tries to figure out what is going to happen.

The room is just as she knows it. The desk is at the center of it. Behind the Carrow siblings, there are shelves full of books and there’s a carpet on the floor. There’s a dark spot on it that looks awfully like fresh blood. Lux tries to not think about how it got there, but her eyes keep shifting toward it. The Carrows are wizards. They might not be the brightest - although Lux figured early on that they weren’t the worst at magic either - but they must know the washing spell. She wonders if the Carrows put that spot there on purpose to scare her off.

“Would you maybe prefer some other drink option? I can ask one of the elves to bring water,” Amycus pushes, bringing Lux’s attention back toward him.

“I…” Lux starts then stops. “No thanks.”

“Please, Miss Astor, I insist,” Amycus presses on.

“Tea is fine,” Lux accepts eventually and just as Kai told her, Amycus smiles and pours two drinks. Lux stares at the cup. There’s a fifty percent chance that Kai’s drink wasn’t spiced but hers was.

“Cheers?” Amycus asks, raising his cup. Lux looks between Amycus’s face and his cup.

“Cheers,” she agrees with a nod, raises her own cup, and drinks.

It doesn’t taste anything other than tea but Snape taught them that Veritaserum was tasteless so she doesn’t celebrate yet.

“So,” Alecto starts once Lux has put her cup down. “Valentina Weger seemed eager to speak with you when she went to Hogwarts. Why is that? You know her?”

Lux purses her lips and nods. “Yeah. She was at school with my brother. I grew up seeing her around pretty often but we grew apart when she started working for the Ministry.”

Alecto nods. “And did you know she was part of the Order?”

“No,” Lux replies honestly. Not really the questions she needs if she wants to know if she drank Veritaserum. 

“Did you know she was working with Shacklebolt?” Alecto asks.

“No,” Lux replies.

“Did you know she was working with Julian Rose?”

“No.”

“You saw her at Christmas, right?”

“Yes.”

“What did she tell you?”

Lux pauses. Staring at Alecto, she says, “She wanted to talk. She asked me how I was doing.”

“And did you know Julien Belfort was actually Julian Rose?”

“No,” Lux repeats, slightly annoyed. 

“You’re friend with Rose, right?”

Lux shrugs. “We were in the same year, same house. We got along.”

“Did he try to contact you?”

“No,” Lux says once more. “I lost touch with Julian when we left Hogwarts last year.”

“And when he was here? Did he try to hint at you who he was?”

“No!” Lux snaps this time before wincing. “I told you,” she says more softly. “I had no idea it was Julian.”

Alecto stares at Lux, probably trying to figure out if she is telling the truth then nods. “What about Weger? What did she want?”

Lux pauses again. This time, she doesn’t know what to do. If it really was Veritaserum, she’ll have to tell them about Nyx and Gabriel and she would rather not. Slowly, she replies, “Again, she wanted to know how I was doing. She wanted to warn me, too, about the way I behave here. I guess she was trying to stay on your good side.”

Alecto smirks at that. “Did she mention anything else? About the Notts, perhaps?”

“The Notts? No,” Lux replies. She opens her mouth to add something and realizes that she just lied. Valentina did mention one Nott. Trying to contain her relieved smile, she goes on. “She just wanted to talk about the school.”

“So you had no idea she was planning on attacking the Notts?”

“No,” Lux replies again, feeling still uncomfortable but answering with more ease. “Like I said, I had no idea Valentina was working against you.”

“Do you know anything about what happened the night the Notts were attacked? Perhaps your parents wrote something to you? You live in Merlin’s Vale as well, right?”

“Yeah,” Lux replies, “but they didn't tell me anything. The last letter I received from them was two weeks ago.”  _ To tell me to stop provoking you or they’ll unleash Dementors on me themselves. _

“I see,” Alecto says lowly. Her small eyes never leave Lux as she speaks to her brother. “Amycus, you have anything else you want to ask?”

***

Kai hates going to the bathroom outside of his Common Room’s but he doesn’t feel like going down all of those stairs so he just goes to the nearest one.

When he opens the door, he doesn’t really register what he is seeing, at first. His eyes first land on the dark, angry wound on Ezra Cohen’s arm, then on his scared face, and finally on his quick movement to put the bandage and roll his sleeve back on.

“Cohen?” Kai asks, eyes never leaving his covered forearm. 

“Alpert,” Ezra replies, looking uncomfortable, hiding his arm behind his back.

“What was that?” Kai asks, horrified, stepping forward.

“What-” Ezra starts to reply but he is cut off when Kai grabs his arm and forcefully rolls back his sleeve and uncovers the wound. “ _ Hey! _ ”

“What is  _ that? _ ” Kai asks urgently, staring at the deep cut.

“It’s nothing,” Ezra replies, trying to free himself.

“It’s not  _ nothing _ ,” Kai presses on, refusing to let go, looking at the cut more closely.

It isn’t just a cut. There are several ones, most of them still bleeding, and it is as if a stone sinks in Kai’s stomach when he reads the word:  _ Halfblood _ .

“Cohen…” Kai says, looking at Ezra in shock.

“Mind your damn business, Alpert,” Ezra says harshly, shaking Kai off and putting the bandage and his sleeve back on. 

“Does Lux know?”

Ezra stares Kai, as if debating if he should engage with him or just up and leave.

He doesn’t really have anything to say to Kai. He knows that Lux cares about him a lot and understands why, and in a way, he feels for him, but Kai Alpert remains Kai Alpert and Ezra isn’t quite ready for them to have sleepovers and braid each other’s hair.

Still, it is too late to run now. Kai isn’t an idiot and neither is Ezra. They both know that Kai saw what he saw and leaving without an explanation would definitely be worse than leaving Kai with no explanation and only his suspicions.

Ezra clenches his jaw then sighs and leans back against the sink. “No, she doesn't.”

“Why?”

“Because I barely saw her before she went to see the Carrows and Theo was right there. Didn’t really felt like showing  _ this _ to him in the middle of the corridor.”

“It was them, wasn’t it? The Carrows?” Ezra has never seen Kai look at anyone like that, aside from Lux perhaps. There’s a hint of wet green in his blue eyes and they lack their usual coldness and disdain. Ezra feels awkward being looked at like that by Kai Alpert of all people.

“Yeah,” Ezra confirms. He figures Kai will be more likely to listen to him if he is honest with him; A common trait between a Hufflepuff and a Slytherin. “They wanted to see me about Julian and Valentina but they didn’t like what I had to say.”

Kai raises his eyebrows. “What  _ did _ you have to say?”

Ezra shrugs. “The truth. That I had no idea what was going on but that I wasn’t complaining either.”

“Lux was right…” Kai mutters under his breath. Kai knows he is privileged, if you can call it that, but sometimes, it is hard to see it. He turns around but not too leave the bathroom. He remains inside and starts pacing in the small space between the stalls and the sinks.

“She said you and her talked and it didn’t go well,” Ezra tells him.

Kai snorts. “We did,” he confirms. “It didn’t.”

“Why do you keep doing that?” Ezra asks, giving Kai a dark look.

“Doing what?”

“Going to her, making her believe you’re friends, only to lash out on her? You have to know she cares about you a whole lot, right? As long as she associates you with Gabriel, she’s going to hold on to you, no matter what. You’ll be able to do whatever you want to her, she’s not going to back down. Don’t take advantage of that.”

Kai stops in his tracks. “I’m not,” he replies but Ezra has the satisfaction to catch a glimpse of guilt behind his irises. “At least I don’t mean to. She’s just… It’s intense with her, mate. Everything about her is just… too much.”

Ezra huffs out a laugh. “Don’t you think I know that? I know Lux can be overwhelming. Why do you think I’m not planning on telling her about this?” Ezra asks, showing his forearm.

“Come on, that’s not cool…”

“Seriously?” Ezra deadpans. “You’re telling me how to treat Lux?”

“No,” Kai replies with a sigh. “Of course not. But you’re the one talking about the people Lux cares about. And above everyone else, she cares about  _ you _ . You’re top of her list. Don’t you think she deserves to know the Carrows carved you like a Jack O’Lantern?”

“And where would that leave us? Lux would kill the Carrows if she knew. Or at least would try to. I can’t risk that. Besides, I ain’t top of her list. Lux is.”

“That’s not fair-” Kai starts to protest but Ezra cuts him off.

“I don’t mean that Lux doesn’t care about me. I just mean that Lux will think about Lux first before anyone else. Look at how she’s treating Nova, Adelia, and Ash, people she has been friends with since basically she was born! The only reason she even made up with Sage was because Sage began to agree with her and Lux realized she could use her to spy on you. I’m not an exception. If I had sided with Nova last year, she wouldn’t be talking to me now. The only person who had a free pass to disagree with her was Gabriel,” Ezra explains, giving Kai an apologetic smile. “I guess that free pass extends to you now. You’re closer to the top of her list than I am.”

Kai stares at Ezra, eyebrows drawn together. “You’re an idiot if that’s what you think.”

“It’s not what I think,” Ezra replies, “It’s what I know. I love Lux - it’s no secret - and I will always support her but I also know her way better than you do. That’s why I’m telling you this. To make sure you know what you’re doing with her.”

Kai looks at Ezra longly, then starts pacing again. “You’re asking me to stop talking to her?” 

“I’m telling you that Lux is going through a lot right now and she won’t stop you from hurting her... But I will. So if you’re not ready to be there for her - properly, that is - then you should just stay away.”

Kai throws his head back as he barks out a joyless laugh. “You think I’m the one who keeps going to Lux?”

“You were in the Gryffindor tower earlier,” Ezra points out.

Kai pauses and stares at Ezra, lips slightly parted. “That was once. She’s usually the one seeking me out.”

“Right,” Ezra nods, although his face lets Kai know he doesn’t believe him. “It shouldn’t be a problem for you to stay away then?”

“Guess not,” Kai replies, but his jaw his set and his eyebrows are slightly furrowed.

They stare at each other awkwardly, having nothing left to say. Kai glances toward one of the stalls.

“I’m just going to…” he trails off, pointing at it.

“Right,” Ezra says again, looking startled. “I’ll head out.”

“Okay,” Kai replies, shuffling to let Ezra leave.

Ezra doesn’t exit the room however. He stops at the door and turns back toward Kai.

“Kai,” he says. When Kai turns around, he goes on. “You won’t tell anyone, right? About my arm.”

Kai bites his lower lips but raises his hands. “Your secret is safe with me.”

“Thanks,” Ezra says with a small smile.

Kai tries to return it but drops it when he realizes that Ezra isn’t moving. “Is there anything else?”

Ezra hesitates. “I was actually wondering… Who’s top of your list?”

Kai seems surprised by the question but shrugs. “Same as Lux, I guess.”

He and Ezra exchange a long look, both of them trying to guess what the other is thinking then Ezra nods once more and repeats, “Right.”

This time he opens the door and leaves the bathroom, Kai closing his eyes and leaning his head back against the stall, letting out a long sigh.

  
  



	31. March, the 9th 1998 - 54 days before the Battle.

There’s a secret spot inside the Slytherin Common Room. It’s not really hidden nor that secret - most students know of its existence by the end of their first year - but it is still known as “the Secret Spot” _.  _ It was added to the Common Room many years ago, after seventh and fifth years fought about the fact that there wasn’t enough room for all of them to peacefully study their respective exams. In the end, a seventh-year student - rumoured to have been He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, although most people doubt it - created a new study room so that the seventh years could be left alone. Today, it is mostly used by upperclassmen to hang out when they don’t want to be heard. A magical lock on the door keeps everyone who isn’t welcome out while it is occupied.

Kai and Gabriel made use of that room plenty of times last year and Kai hasn’t dared to go near it since he came back to Hogwarts last September. He doesn’t necessarily  _ want _ to go there either right now but he doesn’t really have a choice. He just got back from patrol and he doesn’t want to risk running into either Theo or one of his dormmates.

To his surprise, the room is occupied when he enters it. The light is dim but turned on and a girl is looking at the lake through the high window that makes up most of the wall.

“Sage?”

She startles, obviously not expecting company, but doesn’t seem offended or pissed to see him.

“Kai, hey,” she says with a small smile.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt you, I’ll just-” he tells her, gesturing behind himself and starting to close the door.

“No, no, no, it’s okay,” she reassures him. She looks tired but calm, calmer than Kai has seen her in a while. “You’re obviously welcome,” she adds, looking at the handle.

“It might be broken,” Kai offers but they both know it isn’t.

Without another word, Kai closes the door, the tell-tale  _ click _ letting him know that the magical lock still works perfectly, and drags a chair next to Sage.

“What are you doing here so late?” he asks her.

“I couldn’t sleep,” she replies.

“Nightmares?” he tries to guess. To his surprise, he actually wants to know the answer. If he had to choose, Sage is probably his favourite out of all of Gabriel’s friends and he has to admit, being friendly with her hasn’t been so bad.

“Nah,” Sage replies with a small laugh. “I just can’t stop thinking.”

“About?” he prompts her.

Sage gives him a funny look, probably taken aback by his sudden interest in her.

“Just go with it,” he says with a small, shy smile, guessing what she must be thinking. 

She lets out a small laugh. “Alright. I don’t know if you’ve noticed but it’s been a pretty stressful year so far,” she says, eyes twinkling. “And I’ve been trying to not let it get to me but…” she sighs and pauses, looking at the lake once more before continuing. “I guess I can’t take it anymore.” When she looks back at Kai she has a small, sad smile on her lips and her eyes are watering.

“What’s wrong?” Kai asks. He doesn’t know why he is asking her all those questions. Whenever Lux tries to talk to him, he usually has a fight-or-flight response. He guesses he must be tired. Besides, it does feel nice to talk to someone who isn’t Lux or Theo.

“I fought with Nova and Adelia.” When Kai raises a surprised eyebrow, she sighs. “About Lux.”

“Ah,” Kai says comprehensively, leaning his head against the wall. “Of course.”

“Remember that night the Carrows called us in the Great Hall?” Sage asks. “When the messages first appeared?”

Kai looks at her. “Vividly,” he says dryly.

“That night… And the day before, with Nyx’s and Gabe’s passing, I… It was a turning point for me. I refused to spend one more minute fighting with Lux. Life’s too  shirt  short, right? So I went to see her. She wasn’t too keen on listening at first but thanks to Ezra and Parvati, she eventually agreed. I apologized, told her that I understood why she wanted to fight and that I was there for her if she needed anything. She looked so pissed I thought she was going to slap me or yell at me or something. But she didn’t. She nodded and I left before something went wrong. I thought I would just leave it at that and see what would happen, but Lux ran after me. That’s when she asked me to spy on you,” Sage concludes with a small smile that Kai welcomes with a huff and a roll of his eyes. 

“You did say you were there if she needed something,” Kai points out.

“That’s Lux to you,” Sage replies with a shrug. “I accepted because I knew this was the key to make up with her. I also knew that this would complicate things even more with Nova and Adelia.”

“And yet you still agreed,” Kai prompts her, sensing that’s the thing Sage really wants to talk about.

“Lux and I, we were best friends once,” Sage explains with a fond smile, tying her long black hair into a ponytail, getting more comfortable to confide in Kai. “We both grew up in Merlin’s Vale, you know, and sure there was Ash and Gabe but she was my girl, you know? She was the one I talked to about boys, about my annoying brother, and about what I would be when I grew up. But then we went to Hogwarts and we met the others and our friendship… changed. We were still close but it’s different when you go from being a group of four to a group of nine. Lux and Gabriel managed to keep their special bond but I didn’t really stand a chance against Ezra… Plus we were no longer the only girls and we had to make room for Anya, Nova, and Adelia.”

“So that’s what’s wrong? You’re sad that it’s no longer just you and Lux?” Kai asks, trying to keep up. He doesn’t know how Gabriel did all these years, being in the middle of all this “girl-drama”.

“Don’t get me wrong, I love Nova and Adelia and sometimes, I even was closer to them than I was to Lux. But… At the end of the day, Lux is my oldest friend and when I was a kid and I pictured my life, she was always by my side. I can’t let that go.”

“And Nova and Adelia don’t like it,” Kai says with a knowing nod, hoping he understood her well.

“They’re mostly jealous, I think, that Lux forgave me and not them. Which, I understand but I can’t really do anything about that. Maybe because of our past, I’ll always receive special treatment from Lux. And vice versa. I think that’s also why they’re so obsessed with your friendship. Nova especially. She doesn’t understand why  _ you  _ get a pass and she doesn’t. To be honest, I can’t really blame them. It  _ is _ pretty surprising.”

Kai shrugs because he doesn’t know what to say. “I don’t know what to tell you. I guess I was around when Lux had no one else to annoy. Believe me, if I could trade places with Carlisle or Norrington, I would.”

Sage looks at him and snorts. “No, you wouldn’t.”

Kai glares at her. “Stop that.”

“Can I ask you a question?” Sage asks, her eyes boring into Kai. The gleam in her eyes is frighteningly similar to the one he has too often seen in Lux’s.

Still, he makes a “go on” gesture. 

“Why...” Sage starts then stops, looking unsure. It doesn’t do much to ease Kai’s mind. “You keep saying that you don’t want anything to do with Lux. That means she’s the one pursuing you, right?” When Kai slowly nods - he doesn’t blink, just stares at her - she goes on. “Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why is she pursuing you?”

“My guess?” Kai says cheekily, hoping Sage won’t see through his lies. “She has a crush on me.”

“Oh, come on,” Sage replies, pushing Kai’s knee.

“I’m serious! She’s-”

Sage doesn’t get to find out what Lux is exactly. Kai is cut off by a muffled  _ BOOM!  _ and a flash of light coming from the surface of the lake.

“What was that?” Kai asks, looking at Sage.

“Thunderstorm?” she offers not really believing it herself.

Kai goes to reply but there are a couple more  _ booms  _ and quick flashes that let them know that it is in fact not thunder.

“Stay here, I’ll go check,” Kai tells her, grabbing his wand and heading out of the room.

Sage, however, follows him.

“I said ‘stay here’,” Kai says, slightly surprised at the fact that she didn’t obey him.

Sage crosses her arms and gives him an unimpressed look. “So? I’m just supposed to listen to you?”

“I’m your prefect,” Kai replies pointedly.

“Yeah, and I’m a year above you so... Excuse me,” she says, pushing past him and heading out of the Common Room. 

Kai sighs but follows her without another word.

They are almost at the entrance of the castle when they run into Lux, Ezra, Neville, Ginny, and Seamus, coming from the Grand Staircase.

_ Of course. _

“Oh brilliant,” Kai sighs, slightly annoyed, as Sage comes to a stop in front of her friends.

“Kai, Sage?” Lux sounds surprised, either to see them here or together.

“What are you doing here?” Kai asks.

“What are  _ you _ doing here?” Neville replies, suspicious.

“I’m a prefect,” Kai enunciates clearly, tired of having to remind everyone of that. “Which isn’t your case. You could get in trouble.”

“It’s nice that you care, mate,” Seamus retorts, “but it’s none of your concerns so…” He looks at the rest of the DA and tilts his head as if to say “let’s go”. Ezra, Neville, and Ginny nod and start following him, Lux remains behind with Sage and Kai.

“What are you doing here together?” Lux asks, eyebrows drawn together, her eyes alternating between Kai and Sage.

“We heard the booms and saw the flashes, what’s going on?” Sage asks.

“We don’t know,” Lux replies immediately before wincing, “Or well… Hagrid invited us to a ‘Support Harry Potter’ party this morning. We thought it would be a lowkey thing, that we would meet up at his hut tonight and we would come up with a plan to get rid of the Carrows…”

“But?” Sage says obviously.

Lux’s smile is a bit twisted when she replies, sad and nervous. “But he hung a banner!”

“He hung a banner,” Kai repeats slowly.

“Yes! And a big one at that. We were coming down to tell him to hide it but I guess the Carrows got to him before us.”

“Fuck,” Kai breathes out before running out of the castle, Lux and Sage following close behind.

The three of them run as fast as they can to get to Hagrid’s hut. When they get here, however, Ezra, Neville, and Ginny stand motionless. In front of them, the hut is burning down.

“Where’s Hagrid?” Lux asks them, horrified.

“I assume he left,” Ginny replies, pointing at the Forbidden Forest. “The Carrows are probably running after him.”

“Should we do something?” Sage asks, unable to take her eyes off of the fire.

“You mean, besides going back to bed?”

The whole group startles as they hear Snape’s cold voice behind them. Kai is the first one to turn around, looking pleadingly at his favourite teacher.

“Professor,” Kai lets out meekly. “We-”

Snape raises his hand to shut him up and Kai stops immediately. “Can one of you tell me what the six of you are doing here so late exactly?”

To Kai’s surprise, it is Neville who speaks up. “We saw the fire, sir,” he says through gritted teeth as if holding back from saying something else. “We thought we would see what was going on…”

“I see,” Snape says slowly, his eyes fixed on Neville’s. They have a stare down while the rest of the group waits for the other shoe to drop. “And as always, you have felt like the rules didn’t apply to you, right?” Snape stares at each one of them, then starts counting. “That will be 120 points off of Gryffindor, not that there are any points left to take, thirty points off of Hufflepuff, and thirty points off of Slytherin. Let me add that I’m am very disappointed to see you here, Miss Choi.”

“I’m sorry, sir,” Sage says quietly, lowering her head.

“Now, I want all of you back in your dorms immediately,” he orders them. “Cohen, Longbottom, Astor, and Weasley, I’ll see you tomorrow to decide on your punishment. This is the second time this year I catch you somewhere you shouldn’t be, it better be the last time, understood?”

“Yes, sir”, Neville replies, never taking his eyes off of Snape.

“Yes, sir,” the others repeat after him.

“Go back to your dorms. Now. Before I decide to send you all to the dungeons.”

The whole group do as told, moving as one toward the castle. Snape, however, blocks Kai’s way before he can join the others, staring at him with unreadable eyes. “Mister Alpert, a word please?”

Kai seems surprised but stops immediately. “Of course, sir,” he agrees, unsure as to what to expect.

“You are smart, Kaius. One of the most brilliant students I have ever had in my classroom,” Snape tells him.

Kai stares at him, not too sure why he is telling him this.

“That is why I cannot understand why such an intelligent man like yourself would go on a midnight stroll with the group of students the most targeted by the Carrows.”

“That’s- that’s not what happened, sir,” Kai stutters, losing all confidence, feeling like he is finally running out of privileges. “I didn’t plan to-”

“To meet up with the students who call themselves ‘Dumbledore’s Army’?” Snape completes for him, raising a disdainful eyebrow, lips curling viciously around the words Dumbledore’s Army.

“Sage and I, we were in our Common Room when we heard… commotions.”

“You heard commotions?” Snape repeats hesitantly as if wondering if he should believe him.

“Yes, sir,” Kai nods quickly. “I told her, as her prefect, that I should go see what was happening and that she had to stay here but-”

“But she didn’t listen,” Snape finishes with a nod, looking more understanding now.

“No, sir,” Kai admits embarrassingly.

“Mr Alpert,” Snape says with a sigh. “I chose  _ you _ to be prefect last year because I believed in you. I hope you know that.”

“Of course, sir! And I’m proud that you trusted me-”

“Then I can only hope that you’ll find in yourself some more courage and authority. Because Slytherins are not doormats, Mr Alpert. We are  _ leaders _ . I’m sure a man like yourself can ask respect and obedience from his fellow housemates and, more importantly, receive it, without trouble.”

“Of course, sir,” Kai nods again. He has grown pale, not used to being lectured like that by  _ Snape _ of all people.

“Good. Now, I also hope that you understand that I didn’t take any points from you because you are a prefect and you didn’t break any rules…  _ However _ , Hogwarts has changed, I’m sure you have noticed, and no students should be outside his dorm at such hours. I better not see you around here at night again, Mr Alpert.”

“Of- of course, sir,” Kai agrees one more time, this time rather confused by his headmaster’s orders. 

“One more final thing, Kaius, and I’ll let you go back to bed. Has your father ever trained you?”

“Trained me?” Kai repeats, not too sure he understands what Snape means.

“Has he taught you his… speciality?” Snape asks carefully, looking pointedly at Kai.

Kai frowns, wondering why Snape wants to know if he is an occlumens. “I… He taught me the basics, the theory, but he says I’m too young to properly grasp it.” 

“I see,” Snape replies flatly, looking down at Kai. “Well, I’m sure you’ll learn to be more careful about who you consider your friends, then. You don’t want the Carrows to get the wrong idea about your allegiances.” 

Kai could have burst into frustrated laughter if he wasn’t so scared by the way Snape was looking at him and the implications of his words.

Lux again, of course. Always fucking  _ Lux _ .

Something in him switches them, probably a mix of fear and wounded pride reacting at the fact that not only Snape seemed to be threatening him but also the fact that the entire goddamned school apparently thinks that he is Lux Astor’s fucking pet project.

“I don’t see what could be wrong with my allegiances, sir,” Kai says, voice only slightly shaking. “But I do have a question for you. Do you know what the Carrows did to Ezra Cohen after he spoke to Valentina Weger?”

Snape seems taken aback by Kai’s question, so taken aback that he doesn’t even think of not answering it. “They asked him a few questions. I seem to remember that you and Miss Astor were interrogated as well.”

“Oh, we were, sir, we were... But what they did to Cohen was a bit different.” Kai pauses, making sure he has Snape’s attention, then says, very seriously, “They carved the word ‘half-blood’ on his forearm. Merlin knows what else they might have done to him.” He pauses, looking around himself before looking back at Snape. “So, I don’t know, sir. I don’t know about my allegiances. I don’t even really know what is going on or if I should believe Potter or not. But carving the arm of a student with what I assume was a knife… It’s not right. No scenario would make this right.”

If Snape has any kind of reaction to that, he contains it very well. In fact, he doesn’t move a muscle, doesn’t flinch, doesn’t smirk, doesn’t even raise an eyebrow. He just stares at Kai, completely frozen.

“I see,” he says very slowly, still not moving anything besides his mouth. He goes to say something more but Kai speaks up again.

“But don’t worry, sir. As you said, I am not an idiot. I’m not going to join the DA, I’m not going to openly stand up to the Carrows, but I wanted to make sure you knew exactly what was going on in your school. Because the teacher I know, the one I have always looked up to, I’m sure, would never let something like that slide.” And with that, his heart trying to beat out of his chest, Kai walks away and back to the castle, already regretting breaking his promise to Ezra.

***

The next morning, as expected, Neville, Lux, Ginny, and Ezra are called to Snape’s office to talk about their punishment. Lux has a feeling it won’t be as mild as “You’ll go keep Hagrid company in the Forbidden Forest” or “You’ll have to clean the school’s archives”. 

They obey immediately, of course, maybe because they are hoping Snape will appreciate their obedience when the Carrows seem unable to obtain it, or maybe because they have learned to pick their battles.

Ezra is the first one to stand, almost as soon as the words leave Theo’s mouth. It’s him again delivering the message, as always, playing owls for the Carrows, and now for Snape too apparently. Is it because he is the last - capable - Death Eater child at this school and they feel like they can only trust him?

Lux has her theory, of course - Papa Nott sent his son to Hogwarts to keep an eye on the Carrows, to have a man on the inside who will put the Notts’ interests above the Carrows. This theory hasn’t aged well during this past few months however. Kai seems to still trust him and since Gabriel died, Lux doubts Kai would if Theo was working for his father. There’s also the misery in his eyes that hasn’t left him since Gabriel was killed. If Theo’s despair really is caused by Gabriel’s passing, then that makes him okay in Lux’s book. She can write his name right under Kai’s… 

Yeah… Clearly, this year is full of surprises.

The rest stand up quickly as well but visibly not as quickly as Ezra. He seems particularly in a hurry to get to Snape’s office. Lux wonders why is that. He seems scared, anxious, and Lux has no idea why… Besides the obvious, of course.

The passageway to Snape’s office is open when they get here. For a brief moment, Lux thinks of the irony of him inviting  _ them _ here. 

“Please, sit down,” Snape says with his usual cold, voice. The four of them do as told without a word. Not necessarily by fear, respect, or submission, but rather because they are too busy with inspecting every inch of the room.

Lux has been here before, of course, but she was focused on her brother and Gabriel at the time and didn’t really look further than Dumbledore’s portrait. It is still here, of course, and still asleep. At this point, Lux is pretty sure Dumbledore, or rather his echo, as Snape explained her, is doing it on purpose.

_ Albus, you cheeky bastard, _ Lux thinks fondly.

This time she really takes in her surrounding, not necessarily because she is no longer thinking about Nyx and Gabriel 24/7 - she still very much do - but rather because she has a new purpose now and that is to avenge them. And to defeat an enemy you have to know your enemy, right?

She never went to the Headmaster’s office when Dumbledore was still alive so she can’t really know what was brought by Snape but it is pretty fun to guess. Lux is however stopped short in her fun when her eyes subconsciously search for something that is not there. She doesn’t really know what until she sees the same look of confusion and almost horror in her friends’ eyes.  _ The Sword of Godric Gryffindor. _

Snape clears his throat, effectively bringing their attention back on him. “I hope you are all well-rested and have a clearer idea of how you should behave from now on,” he tells them without preamble, crossing his hands in front of him. He sits regally behind the desk, holding his head high. Lux hates to admit it but he doesn’t look out of place. Her heart knows that it should be McGonagall lecturing her and she desperately wants Snape to clash with the setting but he doesn’t. He looks perfectly at ease.

“I was kind to you when many others wouldn’t have been. I foolishly believed that you were simply… out of touch with reality, given the traumatic events you lived last year.”

“You mean when you and your pals murdered Dumbledore, attacked us and trashed the castle?” Neville cuts him off, raising an eyebrow.

Snape glares at him but doesn’t respond, simply goes on with his thought. “I was myself quite new to this,” he explains, gesturing at the room, “and was still trying to find my footing. I was perhaps too lenient but that is my mistake. And I intend to correct it right now. That is why your punishment for breaking curfew will be as follows: You will not be allowed to leave your common rooms outside of class and meals, and thus until the beginning of Easter break.”

“What-”

“Professor-”

“Sir-”

“That’s-”

They all start talking at once, protesting, confused, shocked and surprised. Snape quietens them in a second, raising his hand and closing his eyes in annoyance. “Did I, by mistake, let you believe this decision was up for discussion?” When none of them says anything, he adds with a satisfied smirk, “Didn’t think so. I asked your prefects as well as Miss Parkinson and Mister Nott to keep an eye on you and make sure you wouldn’t disobey. Believe me, if you do, I will know.” He gives them a pointed look and stands up. “Now, Weasley, Astor, Longbottom, please go back to your common room while I speak to Mister Cohen for a moment.”

Lux wants to ask but she knows it wouldn’t be wise so she just gives Ezra a long look. Ezra doesn’t pay attention to her however. He has his eyes fixed on Snape and he doesn’t blink. Not once. He looks completely frozen and scared, which, again, Lux sort of understands, but there is something that she can’t explain.

“Come on,” Neville tells her, pushing her toward the door and Lux follows suit despite herself.

“What are you doing here?” They hear Ginny say as they walk down the stairs. Lux frowns and gapes when she sees Kai, hands in his pocket, visibly waiting for them outside Snape’s office. When he replies, it is Lux he is looking at.

“Theo told me you were sent to Snape’s office. I wanted to know what he had decided.”

“So you’re the one seeking me out now?” Lux asks with a small smirk. “How the tables have turned.”

“Let’s call it curiosity, alright?” Kai says with a grimace.

Lux stares at him, then shrugs. “If you want.” She goes down the last few steps and comes to stand in front of him. “He banned us to our common rooms.”

“He did what?” Kai looks at Ginny and Neville as if hoping they will deny it but they both shrug.

“Guess they finally found a way to stop us from teaming up and wreaking havoc. It isn’t so bad when you think about the alternatives,” Ginny tells him.

Yes _.  _ The alternatives. Kai is well aware of them.

“Where’s Cohen?”

“Still with Snape,” Neville tells him.

“Why?”

Lux gives him a confused look. “We don’t know,” she answers, never taking her eyes off of him. She knows why she is stressed. She doesn’t know why Kai seems as worried as her.

They wait a bit more in silence, Lux, Neville, and Ginny each wondering why Kai stays here when the passageway opens again and Ezra finally comes down. He seems deep in thought until his eyes land on Kai and he suddenly completely switch. His eyes go dark and he practically jumps on Kai, pinning him to the wall behind them.

“What the-”

“Ezra!” Lux lets out, trying to hold him back with Neville’s help.

“ _ Who do you think you are, Alpert! _ ” Ezra yells, fighting back.

“Ezra, calm down!” Ginny pleads him, looking around the corridor, hoping they won’t attract a crowd, or worse, Snape or the Carrows. 

“ _ I asked you one thing! _ One! thing!”

“Cohen-” Kai starts but Ezra doesn’t let him finish, looking furious.

“ _ I asked you not to tell anyone and you- _ ”

“You asked me not to tell Lux,” Kai corrects him, running a hand through his hair.

Clearly, this wasn’t the thing to say because it makes Ezra push back even more. “ _ So you told  _ Snape _? How is that better! I keep your little secret and you-” _

“I didn’t ask you to keep any secret-”

“ _ But I did! I _ did!  _ And I actually thought you were trustworthy!” _

“Ezra, come on, mate, we have to get out of here,” Neville says, getting antsy.

Next to them, Lux has stopped holding him back. She stands there, in the middle of the corridor, completely taken aback by what Kai and Ezra just told each other. What kind of secret could have Ezra told Kai that Kai would have repeated to Snape?

“Wait, Neville,” Lux stops him, snapping out of her thoughts. “Ezra, what’s going on?” she asks, coming to stand between him and Kai.

“Your BFF is an asshole, that’s what is going on,” Ezra practically spits, shrugging off Neville.

“What did Snape do?” Kai asks, looking as if he was trying to hide his worry now.

“He tried to look at it but I lied and I left.”

“Look at it?” This time, it is Neville who asks, frowning.

Put on the spot, Ezra seems nervous. He lowers his gaze, refusing to look at either of them. “I…” he starts then stops. He briefly looks at Kai, then sighs. “The Carrows, they… When they questioned me after Valentina… They didn’t believe me and they said I should be thankful that I was even allowed to be here, that I needed to be marked so that I knew my place.”

“Marked?” Ginny asks as Lux starts to understand where this is going. 

Ezra looks at Kai once more who shrugs. Ezra bites his lower lip and slowly rolls his sleeve up his arm, revealing the now-healed scar that spells out the word “half-blood”.

Lux lets out a yelp, raising her hand to her mouth, in shock.

“Merlin,” Neville breathes out, reading the words as Ginny looks away, disgusted. Kai, despite having already seen it, can’t take his eyes off of the scar.

“I didn’t want to worry you,” Ezra explains himself.

Lux looks at him with tears in her eyes and he smiles shyly at her. “You could have told me,” she tells him. “You told Kai, you could have told me.”

“I didn’t  _ mean _ to tell Alpert. He just... sort of found out,” Ezra replies, rolling back his sleeve. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t,” Lux says immediately. “You have nothing to be sorry for.”

“They won’t get away with this,” Neville assures Ezra. “I promise you.”

“We’ll make them pay,” Ginny goes on, squeezing Ezra’s hand.

Kai looks at the four of them, huddled together around Ezra, and thinks, “ _ You better _ .”

  
  



End file.
